The Masks We Hide Behind
by Aralara
Summary: Emily is a senior in high-school, Christine in the school musical The Phantom of the Opera, and it was turning out to be a pretty awesome year. Until her boyfriend leaves her saying it's only temporary. Just when she thinks she might finally be able to get everything together, a new guy takes the place of the Phantom and something strange happens to her whenever he sings.
1. Chapter 1

**So I just discovered I am terrible at summaries. I'm pretty sure the story is better than the synopsis. And by the way, I don't own the Phantom of the Opera.**

 **Hello! This is a story that has been languishing in my laptop for some time. I actually have this whole book written, but I am currently going through it and editing** **(and hopefully** **adding several more chapters because right now it is too short) one chapter at a time. I will try and upload at least once a week as I fix each chapter. I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 1**

 _It was pouring down rain. The sound of it hitting the roof was almost deafening. I was having no luck concentrating on anything coming out of my teachers mouth. I heard something along the lines of 'enjoy your weekend' and then I was joining my classmates in packing up my books. It was my final class of the day and since my teacher had just let us out fifteen minutes early, I went to go wait for my boyfriend to come down and meet me outside at the school's gazeebo. It was this cute little old wooden structure someone had built years ago in the back corner of campus._

 _As I walked toward the door, I searched my bag for the little pocket umbrella that I had grabbed that morning before the rain started. When I reached the door and had yet to find it, I gave up and shoved my bag around to look for it. I saw my umbrella conveniently on top of all my books instead of the bottom like I had thought it was going to be. I sighed as I went down the stairs that led up to the entrance of the school- or in my case, down to the freedom of the weekend- and every so often an elbow or book bag would bump into me as other high-school students walked by or formed little groups of umbrellas as people talked about the days' happenings. Today had been pretty awesome: no homework, the teachers were pretty relaxed, and I had rehearsal later. Overall, the makings of a great weekend. But, something still felt off. I walked to the gazeebo enjoying the sound of the rain falling around me. There was no one there. I waited. And waited. When twenty minutes had passed, I got up and made my way back to the courtyard. I figured it just felt like a long time because of how early my class had let out, but I couldn't shake my uneasiness. I mingled around in the crowd for a while before I began to get impatiant. I fingered my phone in my pocket, wondering if everything was okay. He wouldn't have left without saying anything and I hadn't recieved any messages, so he hadn't texted me._

 _He finally appeared around the corner at the top of the stairs. He paused, looking down through the crowd of people on the stairs, around me. He pushed his blonde hair out of his eyes and continued to scan the crowd; I can only assume looking for me, like he usually did after school. After watching him look around, I felt like he was starting to look like a lost puppy. An incredibly sweet, attractive lost puppy, but still._

 _"_ _Jason!" I waved my umbrella and free arm to get his attention. His eyes lit as they landed on me, then, his expression was replaced by one I didn't recognize. He walked down to me, I saw him squeezing through the crowd, and I met him with a hug. When he stiffly pushed me away, I knew something was wrong. Usually, he was warm and never hesitated to hold me. He met my eyes and I raised my eyebrows in question. "You okay?" I asked. He looked away and shook his head. "What's going on?" I asked. When he turned back to me, his face was a controlled mask, blank and impossible to read._

 _"_ _Em, I have to tell you something and neither of us is going to like it. But I have no choice in the matter." Contrary to his controlled expression, his voice pleaded with me to understand. But, understand what? My heart sank as he started speaking again. "I'm sorry, but we can't be together for a while."_

 _My breath caught in my throat. "What?" I managed to gasp. "Why? What did I-" He interrupted me before I could get any further._

 _"_ _Nothing-," he began. I burst in, "Then why are you-?"_

 _"_ _Listen to me, Emily!" He thundered. I stopped speaking, stunned into silence. I glanced around at the people that were near us and saw them watching us. I felt my cheeks flame with embarrassment. He had never spoken to me that way before. I glared up at him as he dropped his voice to almost a whisper. "You know I love you right? You know that nothing on this earth could make me stop?" What? Confusion built inside me, along with fury. Did he really just say-? Had I heard his first sentence wrong? I looked at him and knew I hadn't. I felt like I had swallowed a lead weight as I asked, "What do you mean, Jason? Don't tell me one thing and try to soften it by saying 'I'll love you forever.' I don't understand. What's going on?" I looked up at him. He wouldn't meet my eyes, but he no longer had his cool, expressionless face. His eyes looked so sad. "I can't…" he started. He changed his mind and said, "I just want you to know that. I'll try to explain later, but just bear with me right now. Something's going on right now. I have to do this. I'm sorry." His voice broke on the last syllable._

 _"_ _You can't expect me to accept just breaking up for good if you can't even tell me_ why _!" I cried softly, fury gone and an awful wrenching feeling took its place. "Another girl?" I asked quietly. He shook his head. "No! I swear. But I can't tell you the reason. I'm sorry, Em. But this isn't for good. I can promise you that."_

 _"_ _Then_ why _would you do this?! Especially here? Why not wait 'till it was just you and me? Are you that much of a coward?" It was because he knew me. He probably figured I'd have to take care not to bother the people around me. I hate unnecessary attention, I get really weird and shy. It's really strange. It's almost like I'm an introvert or something. I continued, "If you can't deal with a serious relationship just say so." I paused. "If I can't depend on you to talk things out with me now, after how long we've been together-" since freshman year, "-why should I believe you would be any more reliable in the future? Why would you say this is temporary when-"? My voice broke off. He turned away. I stared at him for a few more seconds, unbelieving. I could see I wasn't going to get an answer and I considered yelling just to try and get one. I couldn't do it, though. I couldn't hurt him like that- goad him into telling me something he didn't want to even though it was breaking my heart._

 _I started to leave, just to get away from what was happening, when I felt a hand slip into mine and stop me. I turned back and didn't have time to ask him, just what did he think he was doing, when he pulled me to him. My eyes were open wide as Jason pressed his lips to mine. His arms were around my waist, holding me in place. My umbrella hung at my side, letting the rain drench us both; I was too shocked to do anything. Yet, I wished I could stay in that moment forever. I relaxed as he held me and had just started to kiss him back when he pulled away. He was still holding me to him. I was warm despite the rain when I met his eyes. The intense look he had was enough to make me weak in the knees. He let me go as he whispered, "Don't forget." He left me staring at the trees behind the school, rocking as the wind blew through them, watching the students filter off into the dorms. I couldn't tell if the water running down my face was tears or just rain. Or both._

"-mily! Emily!" I heard my name, distorted, and it seemed as if it was coming from far away. I tried to pry my eyes open, but I couldn't move. I got them open a crack and murmured, "Wha-?" I closed my eyes and managed to sit up. I gave my head a little shake to clear out the fuzziness that seemed to pervade everything and looked around.

"Emily, are you ready to join us?" Mrs. Carolyn asked. I nodded and tried to play it off as nothing. "I'm so sorry, Mrs. Carolyn." I gave a strangled sounding laugh. "I don't know what happened. I must have just… dozed off."

"Alright, then. Tonight, class, I want you to look at-," She continued to talk about our homework assignment for the evening that was supposed to help us study for the quiz that we would have the next day. I barely heard her. My head was too full of what had just happened to me to pay much attention. I stared out the window, watching the rain fall and the trees sway back and forth in the wind.

What _had_ just happened to me? I had gone from staring out the window at the rain beating the ground to feeling like my head weighed a ton and then- that awful memory. I continued to ponder the odd experience when the bell rang and I started to gather my stuff, eager to get to my next class. When I got into the hall, I yelled my best friend's name. "Hey, Abby! Can you give me the homework assignment? I totally zoned out during class today." I deliberately avoided telling her what I had experienced. Didn't want any of the school gossips catching wind of my newfound craziness. I'd have to tell her later, if she suspected anything more than what I was telling her.

Abby laughed. "I can tell. You never fall asleep like that. What's up- other than the whole Jason drama? Or is that it?"

After Jason broke up with me, I ran over to Abby's dorm room and ugly cried for the longest time. She had comforted me by putting on a cheesy movie and breaking out the popcorn and ice cream. It had helped, because I mean, what can't a chick flick and sugar ease? But my heart ache didn't go away that quickly. Unfortunately.

"Emily?" Abby's voice brought me back to the present. "Yeah. I'm okay. It's nothing. I'll see you later, okay?" I bolted for the stairs before she could question me further. "Bye!" I yelled over my shoulder. My haste still wasn't fast enough to evade the concern I saw in her eyes. My thoughts drifted back to the blackout. Why had it happened? Why did this _keep_ happening? Every time this happened, my thoughts whirled in the same cycle. I was surprised that I managed to stay aware enough that I responded when people said hi to me as I drifted down the stairs.

I finally let my thoughts take over. That was the fourth time a blackout had assaulted me. Each time, it seemed it was because my surroundings matched an emotional memory. Why? I had no idea. I wiped away a stray tear that I only noticed because it ran down onto my lips. That memory had been the most painful. The other three had been happy. The first had been a memory of my 6th birthday: mermaids, under the sea theme, the whole nine yards. The second, when I received an award for reading the most books in my whole elementary school for the yearly read-a-thon thing, the third, a holiday memory with my grandmother, who had passed away a few years ago. That one had made me cry. It had been so good to hear my grandmother's voice again. But this one was different because it opened fresh wounds.

I walked down the stairs and looked around, hoping to avoid Jason on my way into the theater. I had hoped, at the beginning of the year, that it would be fun to have a class together. We both loved to act on stage and we used to make stupid little duet videos that we would post on YouTube. But, now, this wasn't turning out quite the way I had hoped. I checked around me to make sure I hadn't missed him, even though I was supposed to be avoiding him. He hadn't passed me going down the stairs like he usually did- sometimes he liked to race to the theater to see who could get there first. I pushed the endearing thoughts about him away and continued to look for him. He wasn't in the hall leading to the theater, either. Where was he?

I decided to ignore him if I saw him. I opened one of the squeaky doors to the theater and headed to a seat. When I sat down, there was a tap on my shoulder and the creak of old craftsmanship as Jason jumped over the row of old theater seats. "I need to talk to you," He said, "about last Friday." I glared at him, tears filling my eyes, making me more angry that he was about to see me cry. Why were boys so stupid?

"I'm not ready to listen to you yet. I'm not sure I even want to talk to you again. Remember the last time I did that? Yeah, let's not." I got up and walked back stage with him calling my name. I brushed the tears that had fallen away as I walked. He called me once more and I looked back at him. "Can't you just give me a few days?" I asked. I couldn't meet his eyes. I slipped behind the curtain and into the green room to wait for class to start.

* * *

The day finally over, I sat on my bed at home and contemplated what I was going to do about my miserable love life. I didn't want to ask Jason for a reason and I wasn't ready to let him tell me. Life. Why does it have to be so complicated? I grimaced a little at this and thought, because then it would be dull. Where would the excitement come from? Where would theatre be without complicatedness?

Theatre was one of the best things I'd ever gotten involved in. I had been in all the community theatre productions since I could carry a tune. It went along from there. As it turned out, I wasn't bad. Far from it actually. My first voice teacher told me I was one of the few she taught that had "natural ability". Theatre was my passion. I loved it. I felt at home on the stage and the applause at the end… that was something I lived for. I didn't really know why. It wasn't fulfilling or anything like that. It was just… it made me happy to hear people clapping for me, and even that didn't describe what I felt. I couldn't really explain it. I just felt like I was _meant_ to be on the stage. It was where I belonged. I settled back to try and fall asleep, glad to be home and not in the dorms. In a way, it was good that my parents were out of the country. Usually, students had to stay on campus during the week, but I had gotten special permission to watch the house for however long my parents were away. Man, was I glad of that today. I needed to process everything that had happened in a place with no outside influence, or looming ex-boyfriends wanting to talk while I was still emotionally unstable.

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 **Well, there's the first chapter. It's one of the slower ones full of info that is important for later on in the story. And I just realized that I might not be able to update for two weeks because it is currently dead week at my university and the next week is finals. I have a whole bunch of projects I need to finish and tests to study for. Yeah. Woo! But, after that, I will have until the end of January to go through this! So I will probably be able to update more than once a week through December. Thanks!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello again! Here's the second chapter, up quicker than I thought it would be. (Truth is I quit paying attention in class and worked on this instead.) -_-... I'm ready to be done with the semester. Hope you enjoy! Thank you for reading!- Aralara**

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 **Chapter 2**

There was a new face in the ever changing sea of people in the hallways. I didn't always recognize a new kid, but he stood out. I mean, this guy was way attractive. I know that sounds shallow, but it was like he was glowing. Like in a way, way attractive way. He was tall; with hair so dark it was almost black. His eyes were a dark green that seemed to glow with an inner light. He was talking to a girl I recognized, but couldn't place her face with a name. He laughed and I managed to tear my eyes away and continue walking to the stairs, to the theater. To Jason. Ugh.

After I dumped my stuff in a chair near the front, I sprinted to the back when I heard the door squeak open, hoping that when he came in, Jason wouldn't notice me back in the semi-shadows. But it wasn't him. It was the new face. The new guy looked around and when he noticed me sitting in the back, he smiled. I melted a little, feeling my face go red. Why in the world was he affecting me this way? I had just gone through a break up for goodness sake. Well, that was probably why. He had a gorgeous smile. He started toward me when Jason walked in the door, scanned the room and then turned in my direction. I ducked down behind one of the seats with the pretense of dropping something and waited for him to sit down. I heard them talking, faintly.

"Hey, Ty, where are you going?"

So Ty was his name. Good, I wouldn't have to be creepy to try and find it out later.

"Oh, nowhere. Just exploring the new territory."

Okay, arrogant much? The new guy's attractiveness decreased a few notches. I snapped back to attention when I heard Jason's voice say, "I wonder where Emily is… she's usually in here by now."

I peeked over the top of the seat in front of me at him. His back was turned to me. Why can't he just leave me alone for like, two days? He knows how I get when I'm upset. I would have to control my emotions and ask him why all the weird drama later. But, not today. I didn't think I could handle talking with him. Not quite yet.

I waited for a moment until I was sure he had sat down. I sat back in my seat and was relieved to see he didn't seem to notice me. After a few seconds, he pulled out his phone, held it up to his ear, and then walked out the door. I noticed that Ty had vanished as well.

"Wondering where I went?"

I jumped out of my seat and whirled around. I practically yelled, "Geez!" I pressed my hand over my heart, feeling it pumping wildly. "You scared me, dude."

"Sorry," Ty said. I didn't really believe him from the half smile on his lips. "So," he said, "I'm guessing you're Emily." I nodded and he asked. "Why're you sitting way back here? Not with him?" He jerked his chin in the direction Jason had just disappeared. I looked away. I wasn't sure if I should tell him. I wasn't sure I wanted to.

"Aw, come on. I'm not that scary, am I?" I looked back over at him and laughed at the thought of his undeniable gorgeousness being scary. "No." I said. I turned in my seat and took a breath. "I'm not inclined to have nice thoughts toward Jason at the moment." I said. "He broke up with me last Friday, and… and-," Then I spilled the whole thing. It was like the flow of words just wouldn't stop. "And I get scared easily, like, jump easily, so that's why I freaked when you were just suddenly there. Next to me." I finished and caught my breath. I looked over at Ty, suddenly embarrassed. "Sorry." I said. "I don't know why I laid all of that on you like that. I don't usually do that to people I don't really know… or to anyone at all. Not even my best friend, even though she tells me it's okay to do. I just-," I cut myself off with a laugh. "Sorry... I ramble when I get nervous. Especially around new people…" I felt myself blush and looked down at the floor. "Sorry."

He laughed quietly. "No, it's okay. Sometimes you just need to get rid of all your problems and tell someone. I understand. Besides," he glanced sideways at me. "I don't mind. Come to me anytime." I slipped my phone out of my pocket to check the time. I felt like the bell should have rung ages ago. I looked down at my phone in surprise. It had only taken me five minutes to tell everything to Ty. There were still two of the ten minutes in between classes remaining. "So he didn't even give you a reason?" Ty asked. I looked up, snapping out of my thoughts. "No." I shook my head. "But I think he's been trying to. I just haven't wanted to listen. I don't want to talk to him right now."

"Wow. I don't remember him being so lame when we were younger." He lowered his voice some as more people started to come to the theater for class.

"You knew each other when you were kids?" I asked in surprise. Jason had never mentioned him, but then we had never really talked in depth about our childhood best friends. It wasn't really a subject that attracted that much attention. Ty gave me a look. "Yeah." He drew the word out as if he was surprised that I didn't know that. Obliviously, I continued, "Why'd you have to leave?"

"My parents wanted to move. So we did." His face had closed off and his eyes, that were so expressive a moment ago, were hard and unreadable.

As open as he wanted me to be with him, I was surprised at how fast he closed off. I switched the subject, not wanting to pry too much into his personal life after he'd been so nice to me. At least, that's what I told myself. "So why'd you come back?" I mentally face palmed. Great subject switch, Emily. What if his dad had wanted to move back? Total conversation killer. Ugh. I'm such an idiot sometimes. Plus, it sounded like I didn't like him. Not that I did in _that_ way, but it sounded like I wasn't interested in talking to him at all.

"I wanted to."

"Oh, okay." I put on my best news reporter voice and asked, "So… how's it feel to be back in town, Mr.-?" I stalled on the end, realizing I didn't know his last name.

"L'Ange. Tyler L'Ange, but everyone calls me Ty." He filled in for me, "And it's great." He grinned and I struggled to keep a blush off my cheeks. "Especially since I met you."

I gave him a look as I forced a laugh. Forward much? The easiness I had felt with him disappeared. "That was, when? Ten minutes ago?" I asked.

"Best ten minutes of my life." He said earnestly. I looked away from his intense gaze as I made myself laugh again and said, "You must use that line with all the girls." No matter how much I liked him, and I had to admit to myself that he was a pretty likeable guy, even after the whole 'new territory' thing. I reminded myself, I didn't need to be in a relationship yet. That is if he even wants to be in a relationship. He might just want to be friends and I'm taking this all the wrong way because of my breakup. Yep. Probably it. Not very many guys had shown interest in me like that before I started dating Jason. That wasn't the reason I started dating him, though. I'm not that shallow.

Lost in thought, I shook myself out of my reverie when I realized that the bell had rung and almost everyone was in the theater, waiting to start class's rehearsal. Ty sensed my discomfort and changed the subject. However, my level of discomfort remained the same, even with the new topic. "So he gave you no reason whatsoever about your breakup." I shook my head. "I'm pretty sure he tried to yesterday, but I wouldn't talk to him. I'm not ready to. I'm not sure I'll ever be ready. Honestly," I confided, still slightly surprised at how open I was being with him, "I thought I was going to marry him." I tried to squelch the anger building up and let out a snort. "Guess not."

Ty reached up and wiped off yet another stray tear that had escaped my notice. I looked up into his green eyes as he said, "I'm sorry, Em." He opened his arms in a comforting gesture and an unspoken question. I answered by falling forward and wrapping my arms around him. I squeezed my eyes shut to keep any more tears from falling. I relaxed, the moment starting to feel uncomfortable, and Ty let me go, somewhat reluctantly I thought. Or maybe I just missed getting hugs like that every day. Yeah. That was it. I looked over at Ty and saw him staring off into the distance. I followed his gaze and saw that he was staring at Jason. His back was to us and it looked almost like Ty was glaring at him. "Well." I stood. "Thanks for listening to my sob story. I needed to vent. It really helped."

"Anytime." He said. "Well, actually, hopefully there won't be another time." He winked. I felt my face heat up for the millionth time that day. I was reading too much into this. He was _way_ too gorgeous for me. I joined the rest of the class just as our drama director, Mrs. Radley, walked in. The class quieted. "All right," She yelled, "start from where we left off yesterday!" As the crowd of students moved toward the stage, I wondered why she hadn't introduced Ty to the class. She usually did that with new students. I shrugged off this abnormality and we began to rehearse. While we ran through everything, some of us getting a break as certain scenes only called for a few cast members, I noticed that Ty still sat and watched in the audience. His gaze was intense. He wasn't looking at me; he was watching everyone on stage. I felt that it was almost a critical gaze, that he could do better than what he saw. But then, he might be able to. I'd obviously never heard him sing or seen him act. I didn't know what to make of this charming but arrogant new guy. There were too many mixed signals coming from him to form an opinion yet; which, honestly, only intrigued me more.

* * *

I stretched as the bell rang, signaling the end of class. I walked off the stage and down the stairs into the pit. I grabbed my stuff from where I had slung it at the beginning of class and started toward the one of the doors. I heard Jason call my name and I turned, half forgetting that " _we"_ were no more. "Hey." He said. "Meet me outside the theater at the end of the day, okay? I want to talk to you. Please. You don't have to, but I would appreciate it." He looked determined to get me to hear him out, but his eyes were sad and worried. That was not something I was used to seeing in them. It bothered me so much that I decided to really consider meeting up with him. He opened his mouth to ask again but I spoke before he could.

"Maybe. That's all I can give you. Don't push me. Please." He sighed in frustration and gave me a desperate look, but he nodded. He walked around me and left. I leaned up against the wall. Could I really talk to him now? Did I even want to? I didn't know and… yes. I wanted to know why he broke up with me. I needed to know what forced this change, but whether or not that would be today, was another thought process entirely. I pushed off the wall and walked to the doors. I shoved one open as a hand encircled my wrist and I looked back, trying to ignore the tingles I got from the contact, about to tell Jason to just please leave me alone, when I saw that it was Ty. I noticed that the tingles continued, even though it wasn't Jason. I looked up at him. "What'd he say?" He asked. "He wouldn't tell me when I asked him."

"He wants me to meet up with him to talk after school." Ty leaned forward and held me in a hug. I was acutely aware of how close his lips were to my neck. I felt him breathing as he whispered, "Are you ready to, though? Do you want to?"

"Ah- I- I don't know," was all I could manage while trying to keep shivers from going down my spine. He let me go and we went our separate ways to our next classes. I just had two more today. I could make it through this. Why did I keep reacting this way?!

* * *

When the bell rang at the end of the day for dismissal, I walked to the bathroom and changed into track shorts and a t-shirt. I slipped on my running shoes and then I walked past the theater and down to the track that ran around the practice football field. Running was a good way for me to stay in shape and forget my troubles while blasting my iPod so I couldn't think about anything. I was there alone. The football team had a game that night since it was Thursday, and the track team was away at a meet, so I had the entire track to myself. Plus, I didn't have to worry about rehearsal for tonight, since there were several athletes in the cast.

Oh, did I enjoy it.

I had decided against talking to Jason. I just wasn't ready. I had run a few miles with reckless abandon, trying to outrun the demons chasing me, before I was gasping for breath and had to stop. I sat down to stretch and looked up into the stands and saw Ty sitting on the bleachers, watching me run. I thought it was slightly weird. He had a laptop with him and a stack of textbooks next to him, so maybe I had just happened to be at the same place he was. He probably wasn't even looking at me. I couldn't tell. I decided I was just paranoid. Besides, it was a beautiful, breezy, warm day. Who wouldn't want to be outside on a day like this? I waved up at him as I finished shaking out my muscles and jogged up the steps on the opposite side of the stands. I walked to my car, saw Jason walk out of the school, and dropped down to the rough asphalt. I winced as I scraped my knee in my hasty descent, but I didn't want to take a chance on him noticing me and thus cause me to spill more tears. I stayed there until I thought he was gone. I raised myself up to look through my car window to make sure, and was startled for the second time that day when I heard Ty say, "He's gone."

I gasped as I jumped a few inches into the air and then whirled around to face him, heart pounding wildly from the scare. "Come on Ty! This is becoming a habit!" I laughed weakly, trying to get my heart rate back to its normal pace. He grimaced. "Sorry." He looked in Jason's direction. "You didn't take him up on his offer, huh?" I gave him a look that said, 'What do you think?' He returned my look and held his hands up, saying, 'Okay, okay!' We stayed that way for a moment, and then we started cracking up. I hadn't felt this relaxed with someone for a long time. Not even Jason. He was always serious about something, could never hold a funny conversation for long, or even just friendly banter, it always turned to a serious topic.

But, I thought, it's not all his fault. I'm no good at conversation either. It was just different with Ty; easy and effortless. Suddenly, Ty enfolded me in a hug. His strong arms gave no room for movement to struggle away like I usually would have. I wasn't always a hugger, but today proved differently. Not only had I hugged him twice- thrice- already, but I found that I relaxed in his hold and the struggles of the past few days just dropped away. After a quick moment of standing in shock, I tentatively returned the hug. As I let go, Ty slid his hand into mine and drew it towards his lips. He pressed a kiss on my knuckles and as he let go, slipped a scrap of paper into my now tingling hand. "Text me sometime." He called as he walked away. I stared down at the paper in my hand. Was I being delusional if I thought he wanted to be more than friends? After that very cheesy, but oh-so romantic moment, I slid into my car and shoved the thoughts of a relationship with Ty out of my mind, as well as struggled to get the red hot blush off my cheeks. I wasn't over Jason yet. Yes, I liked Ty and thought he was a really nice and extremely gorgeous guy, but I was in love with Jason. Or I thought I was anyway. Now, I wasn't so sure. I threw the paper into my glove compartment after I'd glanced at it. I'd give it a month and then see if I still had any feelings other than pure 'like' toward Ty. I guessed not. I couldn't be sure that I really liked Ty or was just using him as a rebound from Jason. Yes, he was gorgeous. And nice. And funny. And really sweet. And he really seemed to understand me and what I was going through. I shook my head to get focused. I was sure that I was just missing Jason. I nodded to myself and pulled out of the parking lot. I had a lot to think about tonight.

* * *

 **There it is! Working on the third chapter now. I probably shouldn't be because finals and projects and no time and you know. See you next time!- Aralara**


	3. Chapter 3

**Once again, I procrastinate instead of doing homework like I should. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

My alarm clock just barely woke me up. I had run too hard the day before. I usually tried to get four or five miles in a couple times a week, but I hadn't in a while- what with rehearsals and homework and now boyfriend drama- and I was feeling it today as soon as I rolled over on bed. I hit the snooze button so if I fell back to sleep, it wouldn't be for very long. My muscles ached and as I started to stretch, I wondered if I'd be able to pull off some of the dancing during rehearsal that day. I continued to loosen up, trying not to fall back asleep. I had stayed up too late struggling to fill out college applications while thinking about Jason… and Ty. I only had a few more applications to finish, thankfully, but I was nowhere near deciding about what I felt towards Ty and what I was going to do about Jason, let alone which university I wanted to go to. It hadn't been a productive night and I had finally given up for the day when I had realized I had been staring at the same question for an hour.

I turned the snooze button off and flipped the light on. I stood up and just listened for a moment. It was quiet. My parents were on a business trip somewhere in Europe, and I was an only child so the house was silent except for the odd creak and groan of the old but beautiful house I lived in. It was kind of strange to not hear their snores resonating through the house, even though they'd been gone for a few weeks already. It was a long trip. I loved them, but I really enjoyed being on my own. I ate a quick breakfast and put some makeup on and hurried out to my car.

The floodlights came on, shining on the frost that had settled on the hood of my car. It was chilly, but I felt a colder tingle run up my spine. A rose sat on my windshield, the stem under one of the wipers. The frost had coated it and it sparkled with the light. Even though I could see my breath when I exhaled, the rose was still perfect and beautiful, not wilted from the cold. My first inclination was to take a picture of it for my Instagram, but I was too angry to move. I stood there staring at the rose until my phone vibrated. It was Jason. He had texted me asking for a ride. I told him that I would be there in five minutes and that the rose was unappreciated and that if he didn't leave me alone for at least a couple of days after that, I was going to beat his butt up, or tell his mother. He could pick. I picked the rose up and placed it in the back floor of my car so that it wouldn't melt all over the seat. It was a few minutes before I got a reply, but by then I was already driving. It kept vibrating so I picked it up to see who was blowing up my phone. To my surprise, I was getting a call, and it looked like Ty's number. I thought I recognized the order of the numbers from where I had stared at the paper he had given me the day before. I answered and put it on speaker phone so I wouldn't have to hold it. It was too cold in my car to do anything but keep my hands on the wheel near the vents blowing warm air.

"She finally picks up." Ty's voice answered.

"You've called me more than once?" I asked.

He laughed. "No. Well, I texted you a couple of times."

"Oh, okay. So, what's up?"

"Nothing, really. I was just wondering when you were gonna get here."

I glanced at my car's clock. It read 6:50. "Wow, you're there really early.-" I said as he laughed again. Transfer students that came in this late in the semester didn't have to live on campus. "I'll probably be there around 7:00. I have to pick up Jason." I couldn't hide the irritation in my voice. Why he couldnt get his truck fixed or live on campus I didn't know. But his parents were rich enough to bribe their way around that rule. There was a long silence. "Ty?" I asked. "Hello?" When he answered, the levity was gone from his voice.

"I thought you were done with him. I mean you've got to stay away if you want to get over him." He tried to joke, but I could hear the strain in his voice.

"I am, Ty. I'm definitely trying. He just asked for a ride and I don't want to be rude so I said yes. His truck's in the shop. Or, at least, it was last Friday. Otherwise I would have said no. I'm not an idiot."

"Right. So, see you when you get here?" He asked. I murmured my assent and we hung up. I typed his name into my contacts while I sat at the stop sign before I turned onto Jason's street and into his driveway. I had always admired his house. It was a huge three story building that was beautiful on the outside and doubly so on the inside, thanks to his mom's interior design expertise. I texted him telling him I was in his driveway and considered about the rotten start to my day. Jason knocked on the passenger side door. I unlocked the door while staring straight out the windshield. As he ducked in he asked, "What rose?" I glared at him, hating that he couldn't even give me a week to build a mental mask over my heart and face so he couldn't get to me.

"You didn't put-" I reached into my back seat and shoved the rose at him, "this on my car?"

"No! I wouldn't do that. I know you, Emily." Obviously not well enough, unless his asking me for a ride was a way to get me to listen to why he broke up with me. Then I noticed the slip of paper curled around the stem of the rose as I started to toss it back away from me. I'd have to look at it later.

"Em, I need you to hear me out, okay?"

Of course. I looked over the back seat as I backed out of his driveway. "What." I kept my voice flat.

"It's about why we had to break up."

I glanced over at him, "Duh. Listen," I said. "just wait 'til we get to school, because if you start talking about this and I become a little too emotional, you're going to drive because, obviously, that wouldn't end well if I ran into a stop sign 'cause _you_ were making me cry."

"Why not just pull over for a minute?" He asked, ignoring the jab.

"Just wait until we get to school." I didn't want to have to be in the car any longer than I had to with him.

"Please, Emily?" He asked. I made the mistake of looking over at him for a moment and my resolve crumbled as his eyes caught mine. I pulled over onto the grass and glanced at the clock.

"Hurry up. You have five minutes." I muttered, refusing to look at him again.

"Last Thursday, I got a phone call. The screen didn't show a number, or a name from my contacts so I answered, half expecting it to be Nathan, you know Nathan, right? I thought he was pranking me." He stopped. I glanced over at him. He was staring straight ahead, out of the windshield.

"It wasn't him." He grew quiet again and I almost wanted to tell him to get a move on when he spoke again. "Em, I was scared, okay? I need you to understand that." I felt a shiver go down my spine. Jason never got scared. Of anything. Ever. I reached over to grab his hand on an impulse, because that was what I did all the time whenever he was upset about something. Well, before last Friday. I felt my hand start to tingle as if a low voltage current was coursing through Jason and into me. I thought, ' _That's strange,'_ before the memory assaulted me.

 _I hunched over the books that were probably going to kill my GPA this year. Why I had decided to take Calculus_ and _Trigonometry together during my senior year in high school, I didn't know. I groaned as I finished the last few problems, thankfully, and stretched out my stiff muscles. Today's shoulder workout had not felt that great. I glanced at my phone dock. It was 6:39, plenty of time to call Emily up and see if she wanted to grab some dinner and watch a movie. I'd probably pick up one of those cheesy chick flick movies she loved so much from Redbox. I had to admit, though, it was worth it to watch those with her and hear her laugh like she did and… they were beginning to grow on me, not that I would ever tell any of the guys that. I grabbed my phone to call her, when it started ringing. I figured she probably had the same idea. So, without paying attention to the name on the screen, I answered. "Hey." I said, expecting to hear her voice. I was stopped cold when I heard, "She will get hurt if you don't do exactly as I say."_

 _"_ _What? Who is this?" I asked. I didn't get an answer, didn't really expect one. There was silence for a moment, then:_

 _"_ _Break up with Emily."_

 _This had to be my friend Nathan. He was always prank calling me, but this was the weirdest he'd ever been. "Nathan?" I asked. "Dude, quit being weird. I know you like her and all, but trying to freak me out isn't going to work."_

 _"_ _I'm not going to repeat myself."_

 _"_ _Well, neither am I. Cut it out." I heard a sigh on the static filled background. "Fine. I'll give you until, say, Saturday, to break up with her. If you don't…" He paused. "Let me just say that it won't be good for either of you."_

 _"_ _I swear, Nathan, if you don't quit-"_

 _The guy cut me off, "Quit being stupid, Jason. You know I'm not Nathan." Condescension dripped from every word he spoke. "I thought you were smarter than that." His voice turned ice cold and his words were so sharp, I felt like they should have been able to cut me through the phone. "Here's a little incentive to do as I say. If you don't, you may find her missing something important. Her life, maybe? Or perhaps you just won't see her anymore. She might get taken. And I think that would throw a wrench into your plan of proposing to her at graduation. I think choosing the first option is your best bet. Two days." I started whispering furiously into the phone, but he had hung up. I stared at it in disbelief before flinging it across the room where it bounced off my wall and onto my bed. I yelled, "What exactly am I supposed to do now?" at my wall. "How am I supposed to deal with this?" I had never been so angry at someone before._

 _I stumbled over to my desk and collapsed in the chair. I buried my face in my hands and felt my elbow knock something off the desk top. It was a few moments before I looked over at the floor. It was the picture Emily and I had taken at prom the previous year. Around the frame was her favorite quote, "Don't lose hope, you never know what tomorrow will bring." I looked over at my phone. I couldn't call the police. They wouldn't believe me. I'd made the mistake of prank calling the cops with Nathan a little too often when I was younger. I guess I'd just have to do as the person said; at least, until I could get Emily to listen to me again about what was going on. Because if I know her, she's going to be ticked off like never before…_

I opened my eyes and blinked against the faint light of the rising sun. I was barely aware of someone shaking me, and it seemed to me that they were shouting something but, I was still half in the state of unconsciousness. I couldn't focus on what they were saying. ' _What just happened_?' I wondered. It all came rushing back, and with the new-not-my-own memory, an exceedingly sharp focus on the here and now, but I felt strange. I couldn't feel anything, emotionally. I was completely indifferent that someone had threatened to kill me, or kidnap me, or whatever. I sat up as Jason sputtered, "Are you alright? You just… slumped over after you touched my hand and… are you okay?" I nodded, debating if I would have to tell him about this strange thing that was happening to me. I considered that a stupid thought. I mean come on! I just passed out in front of the guy! I snapped back to reality when I realized Jason was waving his hand in front of me. "Do I need to call an ambulance?"

"What? No! I'm fine. But, Jason, I have something I need to tell you. You're probably not going to believe me, but…" I trailed off. "What?" He demanded. I realized something before I began speaking. I had caused him a few days of heartache… well so had he, to me, but that was beside the point. I am such an idiot sometimes. "I'm sorry." I whispered. With the tears that snaked down my cheek, my feelings came snaking back into my reality. This memory thing just kept getting weirder and weirder. Would it ever stop?

Jason looked at me and then leaned over and hugged me tightly. "Are you okay? And what do you have to apologize for?"

"I'm fine. I saw what happened... that guy... he called you...me...-"

"What guy? What are you talking about? You sure you're okay?"

I nodded. He opened his mouth to speak but I continued talking before he had a chance to say anything.

"There have been incidents where my surroundings have matched an emotional memory. It's happened four- five times now. I relive the memories as if they were happening again. When I grabbed your hand, it happened. I relived your memory of when the guy called you and told you that if you didn't do as he asked, I would lose my life or..." My last words dropped to a whisper.

Jason wrapped me in his arms. "I will never let anything happen to you. Never. That's why I agreed to what he said, Em." He sighed. "I've missed holding you so much- even though it's only been a couple of days." He paused. "I hope you really are okay..."

I sat back in my seat. "You don't believe me?"

"I do." He looked serious, but there was a question in his eyes. "I didn't even get to tell you about the rest of the call and you already know about all of it. How could I not believe you?"

I almost laughed, if not for the situation. "Yeah it is. I don't know why I'm having these blackout things. I just hope it doesn't happen while I'm driving or something. That would be bad."

"Yeah, that is why you are not going to drive today. I am."

That elicited a nervous laugh while I traded seats with him. Even though I was just outside for a brief moment, the chill outside was enough to get me shivering. I pulled my coat closer to me as I situated myself in my car. When Jason pulled the door closed, I grabbed his hand, tentatively, not wanting another blackout. Relieved when one didn't happen, I glanced over at Jason. The words from the blackout/memory echoed around my head. "Jason, what are we going to do about this guy?"

"I don't know... but I do know that no one will take you from me. No one. I love you, Emily."

"I know."

I leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. Jason held me in a hug and didn't let go until I yelled, "We're gonna be late!" The clock read 7:05. Jason started to drive. I started to think. What if the guy was at our school? What if he was a student or- gross- a teacher? What were we going to do? I asked. "So are we going to pretend that we aren't together?"

Jason nodded. "Unfortunately, babe, I think we should go on acting like we have been." I bristled at his term of endearment. "Don't call me that. You know I don't like it." He looked over at me and laughed. "I know. I've just missed getting to tease you." I sighed, almost content with how my day had taken a slight turn for the better. Besides getting a death threat. "What's wrong?" Jason asked.

"Nothing. I'm glad it happened, too. Now I understand why. You don't know how happy that makes me. You understand me now and that's all that matters."

The warmth of the car gradually chased the shivers away as he drove. I was, in this moment, almost completely happy. I looked outside at the oncoming stop sign. When he stopped, Jason grabbed my hand. I looked over at him, and drew back a little when his face was just inches from mine.

"I love you, Emily. I never lied when I said forever."

My breath caught in my throat. "I know. I love you, too."

Jason leaned forward and kissed me softly on the lips. I pulled away, head spinning. "We should go. Remember? We're gonna be late." I told him, my voice faint. He laughed softly. It had been a while since he last kissed me. It wasn't a regular thing, his kisses. He only did it every so often, just enough that it would make my head spin every time.

Jason laughed and drove ahead to school. He parked my car and told me, "Stay here for a second." He got out of the car and walked around to my side. He opened the door and offered his hand to me. I took it and he helped me out of the car. I smiled and he kissed me on the back of my hand, and then on my forehead. I couldn't help but notice that my hand wasn't tingling like it had yesterday when Ty kissed it, however, I would take a Jason over a Ty right now, tingles aside.

"Three kisses in one day? I feel special."

He laughed again and said, "You are special. You want to go in first, or should I?" I grabbed my bag out of the back and caught sight of the rose. And the paper wrapped around it.

"You go on. I'll be there soon."

He waved goodbye and walked into the school. I slid into the backseat and picked up the rose. I unfurled the thin sheet of paper wrapped along the stem. _Brava_. In flowing script. That's all it said. Creepy. I sat it carefully aside as I looked at my phone. I locked my car and glanced at my phone. The temperature was starting to drop, and my breath was hanging on the air like small clouds. I had five messages from Ty. How had he gotten my phone number anyways? I hadn't given it to him. I figured he probably asked Mrs. Radley for it since I assumed he was now a part of the cast, so I put the slight weirdness aside and read the messages.

Tyler L'Ange-When are you getting here?-

Tyler L'Ange-What's taking so long?-

Tyler L'Ange-Emily? Hurry up! I have something important to tell you!-

Tyler L'Ange-Why is it taking you two so long?-

Tyler L'Ange-Can you text me back? I need to talk to you.-

I had completely forgotten about my conversation with Ty before I picked up Jason, what with the whole blackout thing. I texted him back telling him I was there and walking in. I walked up the old steps, opened the door to the school, shivered as the heat from the building hit me and looked around for Ty, only to see him right in front of me.

"Hey." I said. "Why did you get so irritated about me giving Jason a ride?"

I thought he was ignoring me when he started walking to the theater, but he motioned for me to follow him. I sat next to him when he stopped right outside one of the doors. I waited for him to speak. I was starting to think I wouldn't get an answer when he spoke, "I like you, Emily. After yesterday I thought I might have a chance. You guys broke up, remember?"

"Ty, I like you, but only as a friend," _I think_ , "considering I just met you yesterday. Isn't that a little fast? And I listened to what Jason had to say... well I didn't have a choice considering I gave him a ride," _And the fact that I actually saw it happen_ , I thought, "and his explanation was a very good and convincing one. Everything's fine now."

"So what did you want to talk to me about?" I asked. Ty muttered something about already talking about it. Suddenly he spoke up, "So I guess you still love him?"

"I would guess so considering he told me, went to such lengths to tell me, and made sure I believed him, yeah."

Ty looked over at me, "Well I think you should watch him tonight at rehearsal- from what I can tell from yesterday's class, he's playing Raoul in your school production right? See if you know for sure about that last question, or in that case, both of them."

"There's theater rehearsal tonight?! When did that happen?" I hated it when teachers called in things last minute, even if it was necessary.

"It was announced a few minutes ago."

"Oh... okay. Well, I have to go anyways. I play Christine. I think I had all yesterday off."

Yes, I got to play the lead female role in my favorite musical. (Insert girly squeal here.) Jason was the Vicomte de Chagny, Raoul. The guy who had gotten the role of the phantom had quit a few weeks back saying it was too much for him to handle. I didn't think he fit the role of the phantom anyway. I was a total nerd when it came to The Phantom of the Opera. I knew all the words and lyrics, contemplated almost daily on Christine's love for Raoul and/or the Phantom, and tried to decide who she loved better or if her love for Roul was just an infatuation… I was a Christine x Phantom fan, but in the case that my boyfriend (unofficially official now, happy sigh) played Raoul, I had made an exception for this production. I think it made my acting a bit better when I had to act in love with Raoul. No problem there. But rehearsals had been difficult. There were times when Mrs. Radley threatened to call it off because there wasn't anyone else who could play the Phantom and us pull off our usual quality performances. She usually just said things like that when the cast wouldn't quiet down. She had told us the day after that she had a guy who could play him but it would be a few weeks. The day of though, everyone was a wreck. We had already worked so hard for this? Thinking of that, the guy was supposed to be here today at the latest. I looked over at Ty. Could he be-?

Ty met my gaze as he said, "If you're Christine, then I could be your Angel of Music." He laughed and I felt my heart beat a little faster. He started humming a completely irrelevant song, but I noticed that he wasn't bad. Far from it, actually. "Wait, are you-?" I started to ask. He shook his head just as the bell rang and he got up and waved goodbye. I trudged off to my first class, dreading the rest of the day.

* * *

 **Okay. I'm going to make this the last time I post until my finals are over next week. Thanks y'all!- Aralara**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey all! I survived finals week, thankfully. Barely. I am so ready for break. And I am currently enjoying it. So. Here is chapter 4. I kind of hate the beginning, the middle gets better and then... sorry about it, but it's kind of a cliff hanger. So's the next chapter. Which I probably will upload today, too. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

The rest of the day went by so slowly, I thought it would never end. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was going to happen today. Whether that be from the weird rose on my car or Ty's words, I wasn't sure.

Finally, school let out. I almost sprinted to my car. I wanted to get something to eat before I went back to the theater for rehearsal. I drove to McDonald's and got a salad and a hamburger. I filled up my water bottle when I got back to the school and sat outside the theater to eat. I got my phone out of my pocket and texted Jason.

Me -When are you going to be at rehearsal?-

Jason-Soon I guess. But doesn't it start at 4? Are you not going home?-

Me-Yeah, but I have no reason to. Rents are gone for a few months, remember? Business trip in the UK!-

Jason-Oh yeah. Will they be back for a performance?-

Me –No…-

Jason-That sucks. Want me to come keep you company in the theater?-

Me –Sure :) if you're not too busy. Are you still at school?-

Jason-Yeah. Math tutoring. It suuckss.-

I chuckled a bit as I replied. I grabbed my burger and downed it. I stared at my salad with distaste. Why did Christine costumes only come in one size? I wanted another burger and some fries, but I was stuck with this salad. With no dressing. Ugh. I wasn't anywhere near being overweight, but I had been told that losing a few pounds would help ease fitting into the costumes. So far, I had lost three pounds from the beginning week of rehearsals, about a month ago. I still wanted those fries, though. My wishful thoughts about junk food were interrupted by a figure appearing before me. I looked up and saw Jason looking down at me. I glanced around, saw that the hallways were empty, and relaxed. He plopped down next to me as I started in on my salad. "Hey, babe." I stuck my tongue out at him. "Hey." We sat there in silence until I finished eating and then he helped me up and I tossed my trash. We made our way into the theater and I tossed my books down in the fourth row and sat down to start working on my homework. Jason sat down beside me and grabbed my hand. "Jason, I have to do some work, or I'll never get it all done and actually get sleep, too. And you know, sleep is actually something I need. I can't live off of four hours every couple days like you." In response, Jason glomped me with a hug. "This is nice. I was scared that I'd never be able to hold you like this again." He said, quietly.

"I'm pretty sure you would have found a way." I couldn't hide my slight irritation at him ignoring me when I said I needed to work.

He got off me and took my hand again. I gave up on doing any homework, and tried to just relax in the quiet before rehearsal started and song and noise filled every moment. I thought about all that had happened today, and a few words I hadn't considered fully popped back into my head, making me blush.

"So, you were going to... propose?" I asked. "At graduation?"

I couldn't help but be a little flustered as I said it, I mean, who talks about proposals lightly? Jason's face turned red and he stuttered a bit as he began talking, "Um... y-you got that part, too, huh? I was kind of hoping you didn't remember, 'cause that's the worst possible way to find out when I want to ask to m-marry you." I laughed at his reaction. He was so adorable. But I noticed in the back of my mind that I didn't get overly excited when he said he wanted to marry me. In fact, I was a little, okay a lot, disappointed that I wasn't more excited. I mean, this was the man I loved and he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. Right? Why was I not more excited? I was mostly comfortable, yes, but in the back of my mind there was an extremely attractive face and witty personality that kept distracting me from the present moment. And I couldn't shake the feeling that something was going to happen. It made me want to talk about something else. Ever get that feeling that what you want is not what is happening? It made me slightly uncomfortable so I pulled away and grabbed my homework again.

"Oh and thanks for the ride this morning."

"You're welcome." Something kept poking at the back of my mind, bugging me, and it wasn't the earlier conversation. "Hey, Jase. Did you give Ty my number? And did you know he-," I cut myself off. Did Jason really need to know Ty liked me in _that_ way? Jason gave me a strange look. Thankfully, Jason either ignored my weird cut off, or was just completely oblivious. "No I didn't. Why would I give it to him if I was trying to get you back? I'm not going to encourage any other guys to go after you, Em. You don't remember him?"

Confused at his answer, I tried to think of a way to get Ty from flirting with me (and me with him), "Okay… Well, do you think I should tell him? About what happened? He might back off…" What I didn't say is that I just wanted his take on what was happening and… I just felt like he should know. It was weird feeling that I couldn't really explain. It felt right. I was just having all the feelings today, wasn't I? "Why?" Jason asked. "It could be him!" I gave him a look as he continued, "I doubt it though. No one can change that much, even if it's been a while. Wouldn't it just make him want to be closer to you? So he can try and 'protect' you?" I laughed at Jason's air quotes but, he was right. I hadn't thought of that. Jason continued, "But, he doesn't need to. You're mine, so I'll have that privilege. But you can tell him if you want, I guess."

I felt my face heat up, embarrassed, as I leaned on him. I giggled again when I heard Jason mutter, "As if I would let him try and steal you away." I was starting to feel glad that I had that blackout that morning, the discomfort easing itself away. Then I realized something. My surroundings hadn't linked with the memory, and neither had Jason's.

"The blackout I had this morning was different." I said.

Jason looked confused. "What?"

"My blackouts have usually been linked to my surroundings, I mean, what I relive is usually linked to my surroundings. The one this morning happened when I touched your hand. There was nothing similar between the vision and reality."

"What was it like? If you wanna talk about it."

I nodded. "It was exactly like I was living it- as you. Hence the reason I described it as reliving it."

The rest of the conversation was cut short as a theater door creaked open and in walked Ty. He smiled when he saw me, but it became fixed when he saw Jason holding my hand. He came down to the row of seats Jason and I were sitting in and sat next to me. I felt Jason stiffen next to me. I squeezed his hand and he somewhat relaxed. "You're in the musical, Ty?" Jason asked.

He nodded. "What part do you have?" I asked, even though I thought I already knew. But I was a little put out that he couldn't just up and tell me this morning.

"I'm the new Phantom."

He said it with a smirk on his face and I knew he was thinking about all the scenes where we act together. I started thinking about it and felt my cheeks go red at all the wonderfully interesting little scenes we would have to perform. Particularly the Point of No Return.

Oh dear.

* * *

"And though it's clear,

Though it was always clear,

That this was never meant to be,

If you happen to remember,

Stop and think of me."

Mrs. Radley, the theater director, cut in after the orchestra made a horrendous screech and told me to start the song again. I sang it and the orchestra finally got her approval. We skipped ahead to 'The Mirror'. I wondered how Ty would sound. I hadn't even known that he could sing, hadn't even heard him, other than hearing his humming earlier today. It felt like forever ago.

"Mrs. Radley? Do you want us to do the blocking?" I asked.

She nodded her head, "Oh yeah that would be great. Ty, I know we only went through it like an hour ago, but go for it. And remember, guys" She called to the orchestra, "We are going to take it song by song." Ty hummed as he slipped the mask we used for rehearsal over half of his face and shrugged the long black practice cape over his shoulders. I got a chill as I looked at him. He truly looked the part at that moment, even with his v-neck t-shirt and jeans. "Okay then. Start where Raoul has just left the dressing room." The orchestra began playing and the music built until:

"Insolent boy, this slave of fashion!

Basking in your glory!

Ignorant fool, this brave young suitor

Sharing in my triumph! "

He was amazing. I felt his voice throughout my entire being. It flowed through me and I felt something take hold.

"Angel, I hear you speak, I listen.

Stay by my side, guide me.

Angel, my soul was weak

Forgive me. Enter at last,

Master."

He began singing again. It was such a beautiful sound. My mouth opened and the notes and words seem to flow from deep inside my soul. I couldn't have stopped even if I wanted to. Not that I did.

They flowed together with his voice and it created an unearthly melody. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever heard. I began walking towards the trick mirror. It was as if my legs were moving of their own accord.

Ty half sang, half spoke, "Come to the Angel of Music. I am your Angel of Music." The glass slid away and I stepped through the frame. Ty held out his hand and I hesitated. Did I really want to go with this man? Or was he actually an Angel? He sounded like one. Perhaps he was a Phantom. My mind was certainly spinning enough for him to be either.

I gave my head a little shake. This was blocking, choreography! I was on a stage, for goodness sake! I wasn't going anywhere. But slowly, I placed my hand in his. The trick mirror closed behind me and I heard Jason call my name. I was snapped out of my semi-trance when the entire cast burst into applause. I blinked, still in a daze. Ty let go of my hand to join in the clapping. He looked… exceedingly attractive. The mask just added a tangible feel to how he seemed to draw me to him, his mystery and how little I knew about him.

"Perfect! Okay, go ahead to the next song." Mrs. Radley praised. She looked awestruck, I thought. I sang, still feeling slightly dazed by Ty's voice. The feeling grew as he sang. We finished the song together, with him commanding me to sing. I couldn't refuse. My voice was pushed higher and higher until it was a piercing note that reverberated throughout the theater. I followed him across the stage even though we didn't have any blocking nor had we gotten the boat we would use from the rental company. We ended up in the center of the stage, hand in hand. After we finished we were allowed a 5 minute break to get a quick snack and water and to rest our voices. I walked out with Ty, my hand somehow still in his. I let go and shook my head, trying to clear the haze from my brain.

"Ty! Holy cow, dude. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't been there. I couldn't have stopped listening even if I wanted to."

All he did was smile and say thanks. I walked over to the snack table in the middle of the hall and grabbed a plate. I surveyed the snacks spread across the table and tried to decide if one cookie would really mess up my diet. I decided that I'd been good enough this week and grabbed an especially delicious looking chocolate chip cookie and slipped it next to the fruit I had grabbed while contemplating the cookie situation. After I grabbed a water, I tried to nonchalantly slide next to Ty while he downed his food. I couldn't decide if I wanted to tell him about the threats Jason had received on the phone. I felt the need to defend him to Ty. "Something on your mind?" Ty looked over at me as I tried to figure out where to start. One look into his eyes and I ended up telling him everything that had happened that morning. Including the blackout. Ty's face became unreadable when I explained it, but when I continued, I got a chill. He looked calm, but his eyes were burning with fury. I didn't understand why. Jason exited the theater to join us with a whole bunch of other actors. "God, Em. I can't right now. I'll be right back." Ty parted from our company and walked outside to cool down. Jason grabbed some food and grudgingly told me, "Ty's pretty good. And why'd he storm out like that?"

"Mhmm. It was almost mesmerizing. And I told him. He's pretty upset about it."

I wasn't really sure if that was good or not. I glanced up at Jason's face and almost laughed at his expression. He hadn't even heard me say I told Ty about the events this morning. "Jason, are you jealous of him? Hmm?"

Jason nodded sheepishly. "Kind of. I guess. I mean you never look like that when I sing..."

I laughed again. "What did I look like?"

"Hypnotized. You either really were hypnotized, or you are a really good actress. I felt like I was watching the actual event take place."

I looked over at Ty as he walked back in. He grabbed some more food and put his ear buds in. He looked up and our eyes met. I tore my eyes away before Jason would notice. Plus, I felt a blush start to creep up my cheeks.

"Let's go with really good actress," I half teased. Jason took my hand and we walked back into the theater together. Jason went up on stage to practice and I sat beside a girl named Maia. Suddenly, I remembered that she was the girl I saw Ty talking to in the hallway. She looked like she didn't feel the best so I walked up to her and asked her, "You feeling okay?" She jumped and turned around to face me. "Y-yeah. I'm just kinda stressed. I'm fine though. Lots of stuff going on. You know?" She gave a weak chuckle as she edged herself away from me so I walked to the seat where I had sat my things down to sip on some water. A few minutes later, Ty walked back into the theater. Jason was well into his scene at that time, and it was one of the few times I wasn't on stage for a while, so Ty sat next to me and asked me, "Why did you tell me about your and Jason's situation? What if I was the guy who asked for all of that? What would you do? I mean, how do you know that I'm not the guy?" He slid his arm around the top of my seat.

It took me a while to answer. I had to focus on breathing correctly.

"I guess I don't. I mean, you don't really give off any red flags. You're not are you?" I had a half smile on my face. "I guess I just trust you."

Ty laughed. "No. I'm definitely not him. I was just wondering. I appreciate it though."

"OK then. We have nothing to worry about."

Ty laughed- a wonderful sound by the way- and he squeezed my shoulder. "W-what?" I asked. I almost started looking for Jason, because I figured he'd be done with his scene, but Ty's hand found itself on my back and I could barely concentrate on trying to breathe, let alone try to look for my boyfriend. He might have been laughing at how I was acting right then, but he shook his head. "It's nothing."

Just as quickly as he had started laughing, he stopped. I turned in the direction he was looking and saw something that almost crushed my heart. Jason should have been done with reworking his scene and I had wondered why he hadn't come back over to me. I now knew why. I felt numb as I walked away from the theater and into the hallway. I collapsed against a wall and sobbed silently. My heart felt like it was about to shatter. Why would he lie to me? Why would he make such an effort to tell me about why he had to break up with me if he was just going to turn around and do that to me? Why? Why was he kissing another girl? And how had Ty known that it was going to happen? He had said this morning, see if you really know if Jason loves you. But the blackout? I know it was true. I was so confused. I distanced myself from everything and struggled to stop crying. I couldn't just leave rehearsal, especially for my favorite musical. Not even for this. I wiped my eyes and shrugged off the emotions that threatened to overcome me. I only had a few more hours left. I could do it. I hoped.

I walked back into the theatre and saw Ty giving me a pitying glance. But there was something else there, as well. I didn't know what it was, but it made it a little easier to be there. I only spoke to Jason when I had to. Meaning, when we had lines together on stage. And while I tried my hardest to act okay in front of everyone, Mrs. Radley asked me if everything was alright after rehearsal finished. I had to nod my head and smile, say I was just tired, that's all. I walked out the door of the building and saw Ty leaning against the stair rail at the bottom. "Hey." He gave me a warm smile, and I had to bite my lip to keep from crying again as everything threatened to break me. This was too much, too soon. I walked down, avoiding eye contact with him and I managed to keep my tears in before I tripped on the last stair and fell against him. I felt my cheeks start to dampen as the tears slid down them. "You okay?" He asked. I shook my head, staring at the ground. He lifted my chin up and I said, "No." My voice broke. Ty wrapped his arms around me as I clutched his shirt and sobbed.

* * *

 **There it is! Sorry! Don't hate me! It kind of gets better in a couple of chapters. I promise. Till next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

**And here's 5. It's very short. But it's a different perspective, so there's that. I'm not telling you whose, though. :) Hint: It's not who you think it is. After this one, I think the cliffhanger ends. Somewhat. So.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

 **Jason might be the biggest idiot I've ever met. Did he really think I wouldn't find out he told her? Although the method wasn't something I had thought of, he should have just gone to the police and seen it all the way through. Not that they could have done much about it. Nothing had happened to her. And since I don't plan on anything happening to her, it wouldn't have done much. I would have had to be a little more careful, but I didn't expect him to be bright enough to see the different solutions to this little problem I introduced. I don't hate her. Quite the opposite. Emily means the world to me and I just had to use a little of what I call persuasion to get her free from Jason so that I had a shot at keeping her. As long as he keeps away from her, there will be no more threats. Empty ones, yes, but of course, he doesn't know that. I plan on it staying that way.**

 **I watched as she left the auditorium after seeing the little scene I helped arrange. I could be very convincing when I needed to be. I had seen Maia sitting in the house, watching Jason run through his lines. She looked pale and kept rocking her foot back and forth as if she was nervous for some reason. I saw Jason walk down the stairs of the stage and I slipped over to her and mentioned that she was needed on stage. She hadn't really been paying attention and rushed over to the stairs that Jason was climbing down. It couldn't have happened better. She tripped on the wrinkle in the carpet and fell into Jason. Okay, so maybe I nudged her a bit from afar, but the important thing is that everything played out as I had hoped it would. Following the instructions I had given her- not that she knew it was me- earlier, she seized the opportunity and broke off whatever relationship Emily and Jason had re-established.**

 **I heard Emily's confused gasp when she saw them together, the door creak open and shut as she left the theater. I couldn't find happiness in what just happened. It didn't matter how well my plan went, it hurt me to have to cause her pain of any kind. Although, if things went my way, she wouldn't be hurting in a few days. Everything would be set right.**

* * *

 **Super short, I know. I'll make it up to you in the next chapter. Till Thursday! :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay, so I lied. This doesn't end the cliffhanger at all. A couple more chapters and then I think everything will make sense. And here's chapter 6! If any of it is wonky sounding, it's because I was up until like 4 this morning watching Supernatural and typing at the same time. (It's one of the best show btw.) I tried re-reading over it to see if everything made sense, but everything kind of just blends together after reading it so many times. So. Here ya go! Enjoy! (And thanks for the reviews, you two! I appreciate it! :))**

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

A couple days passed. I found two more roses left on my car. One each morning before I headed to school. Rehearsals went by uneventfully, nothing new with Ty. He seemed to be keeping his distance, which I was grateful, but at the same time, I longed for the comfort he seemed to bring whenever I was around him. I swept today's rose off the hood and let it lie on the ground. I pulled out of my driveway and turned some soft music on, all the while thinking about the roses and my crazy love life. No. Scratch that. Not my love life. Contemplation of _that_ would only lead to pain and more tears. But the roses… Were they from Ty? But how would he know where I live? I guess the same way he knew my phone number. I still needed to ask him about that. I shuddered; this was beyond creepy. Not necessarily him, but the whole situation that I seemed to be in the middle of. And Ty's voice… it was amazing. Surely that said something about him. I mean, he wasn't actually _like_ the Phantom. Nothing he had done really sent off warning signs. He had been there for me. He really seemed to care for me. I didn't think it was him. But if not him, then who? Who would do this?

The day before, though, Ty had been absent. It seemed strange that he would miss a day of school, especially with rehearsal scheduled for that night, since he was going into the musical so late. _I_ would have needed to focus all my time on my work. I trudged up the final few steps and started walking to my AP Chemistry classroom. When I got there, I saw that Ty was back and as attractive as ever. I learned something new about him, too. Not only was he in my AP Chem class, he was _teaching_ it today. Apparently, he was a part of some advanced program that involved student teaching in classes that were going to be a part of that students' career choice. Mr. Keller, our teacher, was sitting in the back of the room, thumbing through an old ratty science magazine. I caught Ty's attention before class started and greeted him. "Where were you yesterday? We all missed you, especially at rehearsal. I mean, you are the lead." I teased, trying to get some info from him. I really wanted to know why he hadn't been there. It didn't seem like him. "I told Mrs. Radley that there would be a few days that I wouldn't be able to attend. I know this musical like the back of my hand, anyway. But I really had something I couldn't miss yesterday." I didn't miss the note of arrogance in his statement, or how he avoided my question. "Alright, Mr. L'Ange. But I have a question for you. How'd you get my phone number? And are you leaving roses on my car?"

His forehead wrinkled as he looked at me. "What roses?" He lowered his voice so that the surrounding students wouldn't pick up on our conversation. "Is it that stalker guy?"

I nodded. He continued. "I'm sorry you have to go through this. I'm sorry that this is happening to you. It sucks. And I'm sorry about what happened Wednesday." We made our way to a lab table near the front of the room, covered with equipment. "Why Jase would do something like that to you, I don't know. You would think he'd be grateful for what he has. I'd never do that to you, Em. Heck," He grinned over at me, "I'd probably have to pinch myself every day just to be sure I wasn't dreaming if you were mine." I shivered a little as his hand brushed mine when he reached around me for a pair of goggles on the table. "Cold?" he asked. "A little." I lied. No way was I going to tell him he was the reason I was cold. Not even cold. It was like a finger made its way up my spine, sending tingles throughout my body.

I closed my eyes. I didn't need continue down this thought path. I couldn't start crying during class. I forced a laugh as I said, "The most difficulty I'm probably gonna have is when I have to pretend to _like_ him. 'Cause I certainly don't right now." Ty gave a soft chuckle. "You're pretty tough." He said. I felt my lips twist into a wry smile. "But I have another question." I continued. "How did you know about Jason? And, again, how did you get my phone number?"

Ty didn't respond for a few seconds.

"I saw him and the same girl out together a few days before. And a friend of ours gave it to me."

"Oh. Who?"

"Abby Howlser."

"Oh, okay. You know her, too?"

"Yeah. We were all friends before I moved. You know." I'd have to talk to her about that. Even though she was my best friend, that wasn't okay. Ty looked at the clock hanging on the wall. "Gotta start class. Mr. Keller will throw a fit otherwise. We'll talk more in a few minutes, okay? After I get this going."

Ty called the class to attention before he debriefed us on the experiment we'd be doing. We all partnered up, he with me, and he asked me to get a glass rod and a beaker while he lit the burners. I walked back to the back of the room and joined the crowd of people scrambling for good equipment. I grabbed a rod and a clean beaker and a pair of goggles that didn't look too dorky. I started to make my way to my table with everything and passed another group of students already deep into the assignment. One of them was completely sprawled out and I, being the completely oblivious being that I am, tripped over her foot that she had stuck out. I dropped the rod and beaker and they broke into a thousand razor sharp pieces. I ran into Ty and he fell against the table. It rocked precariously on two legs and Ty disappeared from my vision as I fell onto the floor. I felt a sharp incredibly icy pain in my hands when I caught myself on the ground. I looked down to see that I had fallen on the shattered glass. I lifted up my hands from the growing pool of blood to see shards sticking out of my hands. I let out a pained yell. But it was nothing compared to the unearthly scream that made me look up to see the lab table on fire. I realized that everyone was looking at me and I wondered if I was the one screaming. Ty had his back to me and all I could think in that moment was ' _That's weird. Figure he'd be trying to help_.' But that thought was chased from my mind as the table tipped over and I had to try and scramble out of the way. The scream didn't break, in fact, it seemed to get louder as I dragged myself away and I left bloody streaks on the floor as the glass cut deeper into my palms. There was what seemed like a tremendous boom as the table landed inches from my legs. The crowd around me was growing and my oxygen lessening.

I was starting to feel the effects of so many bodies pressed together. My breathing got quicker and I started to feel light headed and I heard shouts of, "Get out of the room!" and "Grab the fire extinguisher!" and "Are you okay?" before I cracked my forehead hard against the floor and knew no more.

* * *

Something happened. I couldn't remember what. My mind was all fuzzy and I was confused. I tried to open my eyes, but everything was too bright. My head hurt, my hands hurt, my eyes rolled and I heard someone talking. "She should be fine. Do you know wh-..." the disembodied voice faded. Complete blackness took hold of me again. Where did everybody go? Where was I?

I smelled the sterile smell of a hospital or doctor's office. I couldn't see anything. Then I opened my eyes and tried to sit up. I winced as the room spun and fell back against the pillow. My head was throbbing and so were my hands. I glanced down at them so I wouldn't have to move my head and tried to take in the bandages that covered my palms. What had happened to me? I couldn't think of anything that had happened recently. Why was I here? I thought about calling for a nurse, but I didn't think that would- the sudden sound of something shattering cut off my thoughts. There was a knock on the door of my room. I turned my head slowly so I wouldn't set off a fresh wave of throbbing. It was a nurse.

She bustled around my bed, organizing different things in the room. There wasn't much there, but she continued on puttering around. "Glad to see you're awake. I'm Becky, dear, if you need anything. And if you feel a little disoriented, don't worry. That's normal for folks who have been put under. Stitches, you know." Okay, so I definitely wouldn't mention not remembering what had happened. "Your hands were cut up pretty badly and you smacked your head pretty hard. We were worrying that you had a concussion but you'll be fine. The fire was put out so you can go back to school Monday. They dismissed school early because of the fire, but I'm pretty sure half of your school is in the waiting room." I groaned in embarrassment. More people to witness my clumsiness. The nurse continued her speech. "Now just make sure to change your bandages about twice a day and don't get the stitches wet for at least two days. Your doctor will probably prescribe something to take the edge off of the pain in your hands. We've already talked to your parents and they have given their consent to let you out of here if you have someone drive you home. Those were our conditions. We can't have you driving after just hitting your head. Safety precaution, you know." I sighed. That meant I had to call Jason. "Okay." She smiled at me. "It could have been a lot worse, dear. Now just sit tight. The doctor will be in here soon." She closed the door quietly and I was left alone again. So I fell. I couldn't recall everything, but I remembered falling, hitting my head, but Ty had been there, right? Yeah, he had been teaching. We talked, I got the stuff for the lesson, and then… I… fell? The table fell. And Ty? What had happened to him? I was interrupted by the entrance of the doctor. "Hello, Miss Amare. How are you feeling? I'm Dr. Friede." We chatted a bit about my head, hands, and overall general health before Dr. Friede decided to give me leave to go home. "Don't forget to call a friend for a ride, Miss Amare." He left and I fumbled for my phone, conveniently on the tray table connected to my bed. I scrolled through my contacts, wondering if I absolutely had to call Jason for a ride. Abby didn't have a car, I didn't know Jase's friend Nathan well enough to want to ask him for a ride, and he gave me a weird feeling; I couldn't bother Ty with something like this, plus, I didn't even know if he was okay or if he even had a car. Rents were out of the country. I gave up on looking. My hands hurt too much to continue, and I knew it was pointless. It was going to have to be Jason. I tapped his contact and called him, gingerly holding my phone up to my ear. It rang only once before he picked up. "Em! Oh my God, Em, are you okay? I'm almost at your room, hold on." I hung up and waited for him. I saw him sprint from around the corner and he stood in the doorway looking at me. "I've been cleared to leave, but I need you to drive me home." How I hated this. I couldn't look at him, much less control the anger that was starting to eat me up.

"Okay. I got a ride from Nathan. But, babe-"

"Don't call me that!" I hissed at him. I let my anger take hold and I glared at him.

"I- I'm sorry. Em, I don't understand. What's going on? Why have you been ignoring me?"

He slowly walked up to me and took my hand, but I jerked it away, half out of pain. I continued to glare at him in disbelief. "As if you don't know." I shoved past him, trying to ignore the dizziness that made me shaky. I had to lean on the wall for a moment, overcome. Jason was immediately at my side, his arms around me, supporting me. I resented the touch, but didn't deny the help. I managed to steel myself enough to walk to the check-out. Alone. I got a note from the secretary and walked into the waiting room with Jason at my side. I was greeted with a small crowd of theater folk all waiting to check on me. A rush of questions about my well-being bombarded me and I did my best to answer everyone. I smiled and tried to explain the situation. I said I dropped some lab equipment because I tripped, I hit a table, accidentally set it on fire, and cut my hands when I fell on the glass shards. Everyone expressed their relief and we all made our way out into the parking lot. I managed a small but genuine smile for the first time in what seemed like days. I was so grateful for my theatre family. They were there when my actual family couldn't be, and sometimes I felt like they were the only reason I survived anything. "Emily!" I heard a voice call my name, and I turned towards it. "Abby! Hey! I'm okay."

"So I gathered. I'm glad. But what did you do? How'd you get school called off? I need to know for my next trig test." I laughed at that. "It was a lab accident. I dropped some glass equipment, tripped and cut my hands on the glass. I also set a table on fire." She burst out laughing at that.

"Only you would manage that last part."

I smiled again, glad to hear a friend's voice. Jason murmured that he was going to wait in Nathan's car. I waited until he was gone when I said, "I also am having a lot of idiot boy trouble. And, well, you just need to come over. Like soon. We need to talk. I think my sanity depends on it."

"'Kay. Tonight good?" Abby asked. "You have rehearsal tonight?"

"Mhmm. But I don't think it will carry over too late. Come over at like, 10? It's Friday, right? Got anything tomorrow?"

"Nope! Free from now until Monday! Hang in there, Em. You got this. See you then!" She sashayed away back to her parents' car.

"See you." I waved goodbye. Tonight was going to be a serious cry-fest. I walked to what I assumed was Nathans' car. I saw Jason sitting in the passenger's seat when I walked around the front so I got in the back and buckled in. I looked at Nathan, studiously ignoring Jason. "Thanks for waiting. Could you maybe drive me back to school so I could pick up my car?"

"Sure, Em. Anything for you." Jason elbowed him so I didn't know if he was being sarcastic or serious. I saw him blushing through the rear-view mirror and figured he was serious, though I couldn't imagine why. "Thanks, Nate." I said. I almost tried flirting a little just to make Jason mad, but I found that I couldn't. It hurt too much. Jason kept texting me from the front, asking what was wrong. I finally texted him back out of frustration and said:

Me-If you have to ask me in a text, I won't take you seriously. Shut up and leave me alone.-

We finally got to school after an incredibly awkward ride with Nathan trying to make small talk, but neither Jason nor I were in the mood. I reluctantly surrendered my keys to Jason and he got into my car and waited for me. I slammed the door, buckled my seat belt and waited for him to start the ignition. After a couple minutes of silence, I asked, "Aren't you going to start the car? That's kind of how it works."

"What did I do?" He asked. I looked at him in disbelief. Was he for real? "Think about it, genius. You can figure it out." We were silent for the rest of the trip. I was beyond pissed that he couldn't figure out why I was furious with him. It hurt that he thought I was so stupid I couldn't see that he had betrayed me when he had kissed Maia in plain sight, in front of everyone. How conceited can one guy be? He finally gave up on trying to question me and drove me home in silence. I told him to take my car home with him since I wasn't allowed to drive today. "Bring it back on Monday morning. You'll have to take me to school. Now leave." He went. But it didn't stop him from trying to text me when he got home.

Jason-Babe, what's wrong?-

Jason-I honestly don't know what's going on.-

Jason-Please answer me.-

I finally did. Oh, man, did I.

Me-If you don't understand what you did, you are the most ignorant, self-centered, arrogant child I know. Leave me alone. Don't answer this just shut up and go away. I can't deal with you right now. I don't understand how you don't get what you did. I'm not going to point it out to you. I'm not an idiot so good luck explaining this one.-

* * *

He kept trying to call me after my, I admit, rude message, but he deserved a little bit of meanness after what he did to me. Maybe more than just a little. I eventually gave up on ignoring the messages and just turned my phone off. When Abby rang my doorbell, it was as if a tap had been turned on and wouldn't turn back off. I couldn't stop crying. I also couldn't quit running through what had happened. I couldn't make any sense of it.

"What? Why would he do something like that? What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know why. I just turned around after talking to Ty, and he was kissing another girl." I explained.

"Are you sure it was what it looked like?"

"What else could it be?"

"She could have come onto him." Abby suggested.

"I just don't know what to think right now... but, that's highly unlikely. She had never shown any interest before… So… I don't know, Abs."

Abby, thankfully, picked up my hint and changed the subject. But not to an easier topic.

"Okay. So... I'm guessing you have heard Ty sing by now? He's the new Phantom right?"

"Yeah. Did you know Ty before he moved?" Abby gave me a confused glance.

"Yeah. He was one of our friends up until then. More like he just disappeared. And suddenly he's back again. He is an amazing singer. He's just an awe inspiring artist in general. I'm surprised he hasn't been approached by higher ups yet. He certainly has the money for it. It's actually funny that he's playing the Phantom. He's fantastic at almost everything you can imagine. But, Em, you don't remember him at all?"

"Why should I? And I knew about the singing part, but everything else... Well, I haven't really talked to him all that much about what he's interested in… not with this whole creepy stalker thing going on and the Jason thing... and by the way, did you give Ty my number? Ugh… it's all just too much. I haven't been the most social of late."

"Stalker thing? What? What's going on?"

"No, answer my questions first. It's more important at the moment."

"I- yeah, sorry. Guess I should have asked first. And what stalker thing!"

I explained the situation. Abby just sat there. And sat there.

"There is no way Jason is cheating on you. It can't be what it looked like. He would not go through that much trouble to explain to you if he was just going to turn around and cheat on you. Trust me, that guy's totally in love with you. And Em, I'm so sorry that you have to go through this. I think you should go to the police, no matter what the guy said. If he 'loves' you, he won't kill you. A memory blackout thing, though? That's pretty weird."

"Yeah, I'd rather not test that though."

"I get it. I understand." We talked some more about other subjects until I couldn't hold in my emotions any more. I grabbed a pillow, said, "One moment please." and screamed into it. I sat back up and sniffed; the waterworks were about to start again. Abby tried to comfort me and she did- some, saying that I just needed to get over my pride and remember the fact that boys are generally stupid. They don't know if they do something wrong, but for the fact that even she didn't realize how Jason couldn't recognize his wrongdoing threw her off. I just needed to ask him why he was kissing the other girl. I decided that I would wait until Monday to tackle that question. Abby made me promise that if I didn't do something about the stalker, I would let her go to the police. Basically, I promised I'd let her go to the police in about a week, after I asked Jason about the other girl and because I couldn't do anything about the stalker guy, and honestly, it felt like he had given up. I probably should have gone to the police in the beginning, but everything had been quiet, except for the roses, and those weren't even threatening. It wasn't like he was making anymore phone calls. (I might have just been trying to convince myself, but it was fine.)

"So what movie do you wanna watch?" she asked me.

"Would you mind if we watched Phantom again? I need to compare some stuff." Abby laughed, "I should have known that you can't even take a break from that." I went and grabbed the movie from the movie cabinet. I turned on the TV and made some popcorn. I couldn't help but sing along with the Christine on the screen. I loved hearing the differences in our voices. When the Phantom sang, all three of our voices created something not quite real. "Wow." Abby said. "That was good. I should have made you pick a different movie, but still good. I wonder what you and Ty sound like together. That'll be interesting to hear." I thought for a moment. Our duet sounded completely different. More emotional and real. If that was possible.

"Well, you're just gonna have to come watch us." I answered at last.

"No question about that." Abby said. We chatted all through the movie, me taking moments to study the different techniques throughout the film, until we both finally fell asleep in front of the TV.

* * *

 **I tried to make everything make sense and I'm not sure if I did or not. Whelp. I'll post the next chapter today. SUPER short. Thanks!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Super short. Another different perspective. Enjoy! :)**

* * *

 **Chapter 7**

 _God, I'm so jealous of him. He shouldn't be allowed to have her. Jason doesn't realize how soon his time with her will come to an end. Then she will be mine. The thought of him, devastated at her disappearance, makes me unbelievably happy. After years of watching them together, him always going on and on about how happy he was to have her, to be near her, to touch her. God. I can't take it anymore. I just need her. Then I could maybe be okay. If I can just get her to see that Jason isn't as wonderful as everyone thinks he is, I know I could be okay. He doesn't realize how lucky he is to have her. She's so beautiful and kind. The opposite of who I am. I just have to wait a while longer. Just a little while. A while. I could be loved, again._

* * *

 **I might be done with updates for the week, but I might possibly update Thursday or Friday, depending on how lazy or productive I get to be. I realize that makes no sense. It's fine. I'm fine. Also tired. The next chapter is short, the next chapter is a lot longer. By like 3000 words. I might just combine them. Don't know. So. See you next update!**


	8. Chapter 8

**I couldn't wait to post. I needed to end the cliff hanger. Here!**

* * *

 **Chapter 8**

I hadn't talked to Jason at all over the weekend. I ignored every attempt of his at communication and I tried my hardest to have some good R&R without any other outside distractions. It proved very restful, sitting in the quiet, alone, doing homework, singing, practicing lines. It was wonderful. No boys, no worries. At least for the weekend. Now it was Monday, and I wasn't ready for it. I stood outside my house, shivering a little from the chill in the air. I reveled in the cold, though. It was bracing. I wished I could just walk to school, but six and a half miles was a little too much for me on a Monday. As soon as Jason pulled into my driveway, I steeled myself against the emotions that broiled up in my chest. I opened the door to my car and tossed my stuff into the floor. I got in, closed the door, and buckled myself in, all without looking at Jason. Silence ensued until he parked the car. I held my hand out for my keys and Jason grabbed it. "Emily. What's going on, babe? Are you okay?" I turned to him and stared. "Keys." I jerked my hand away. "Now." Jason looked at my hand, disbelieving. "Babe-," He started. "I swear to God, Jason, if you call me that one more time, I will punch you in the mouth. Now give me my keys." I turned away, hand outstretched. I felt the cool metal of my keys against my palm as Jason surrendered them. I grabbed my bag and jumped out of the car. I waited for Jason to get out and then I locked it. I shouldered my bag, pocketed my keys, and turned to go into the school. "Babe, why-," Jason tried again. I stopped. Did he really just call me that again? He really was dense. Not only did he think I was oblivious, stupid, and weak, but now he ignored me whenever I said something. The spark of anger that had resided in me since I got in the car burst into an inferno that consumed me. I saw red. I turned back, strode up to him and decked him in the face. He grunted and staggered back. His hand flew up to his face and held his nose, which was now spurting blood. I whirled around and went to my chemistry class, knuckles throbbing along with my heart.

* * *

"Hey, Em, did you hear? Someone punched Jason this morning and broke his nose." Abby walked with me after our Spanish III class, telling me everything she had heard from Nathan. "Actually, Abby, it was me." Abby stopped walking, much to the displeasure of those behind her in the hallway. "What?"

"He wasn't listening to me and I just got so mad and I- I guess I snapped."

"Why were you talking to him in the first place? I thought you were still-?"

"I was- am, but he had to drive me home, remember? So he still had my car and had to take me to school this morning. It sucked. I wasn't even going to talk to him, but…" I couldn't go on.

"Dang, girl. I didn't think you had that in you. Talk later?" We had come to the point in the hall where we split for our other classes. "Yup. See you." I clenched my fist, wincing with the pain that came from my bruised knuckles. I slowly walked down the hall to my history class, knowing I was one class closer to having to confront Jason. He wasn't going to let me alone after I hit him. He was going to confront me unless I met him first. I didn't think I could deal with his anger, so I was going to have to lock everything away and figure out what the heck was going on. I sat through my next two classes, AP World History and Acting III, barely aware enough to follow the general conversation of material my teachers were spewing. When we were let go for our lunch break, I was as ready as I could be. I trudged my way to the theater. To wait. For him. I was dreading it.

* * *

I was sitting alone in the theater, too nervous to try and eat anything when he walked in. I couldn't help but grin a bit when I saw his bandaged nose. "Emily." I stood.

"Jason."

He crossed his arms and looked at me. "So are you going to tell me why you just up and punched me?" The spark returned.

"You still have no idea?" I asked.

"Nope." He said. "I've tried to tell you that. But you wouldn't listen to me."

"Did it ever occur to you to think what you have done in the past week that would cause me to act this way?"

"Em, no? What?"

"Well, for one thing, it should have been obvious that you needed to explain why you were kissing some girl during rehearsal last week." Jason's face turned white. "Oh, God, Emily, I-," he started. "No." I interrupted him. "Let me finish." He quieted. "I don't get how you could be dumb enough not only to somehow think that I wouldn't have found out about it- I mean I _saw_ you two." I took a deep breath, trying to keep my anger in check. "And then you have the gall to act innocent, like you have no idea what I'm talking about. And then- then you ignore me when I tell you not to call me something. You know I hate it when you call me babe. It's like the worst thing you could have done, after all that. You just showed me how much you didn't care. So I snapped this morning. I'd had enough. And you have no idea how much I'm struggling right now, how much I'd like hit you again. So please, explain."

Jason gaped at me. "Is it that hard to say something? Anything?" I asked, the spark starting to get out of control again.

"Emily. I- I didn't-," he stopped. "Answer me!" I demanded.

"I didn't kiss her. She tripped and it was an accident. I'm sorry." I stared at him. "Is that it? That's not enough." There was an awkward pause. "Ty said he saw you two together before. Tell me why." I was losing it. Numbness was starting to replace the anger and I began to find that I just didn't care anymore.

"She's a math tutor at the math lab here. She was helping me with homework. Emily, I should have told you, yes, and I'm very sorry about that. But was all this necessary?"

"I don't believe you. You act like it's no big deal. Like I should just be okay with that ridiculous-," Jason cut me off. "No, Em. It is a big deal. I should have told you. I was stupid and I don't know why I didn't say anything. I know how you are."

"How I am?"

"Bad choice of words, sorry." I glared at him as he continued. "There's nothing going on between Maia and me. I promise. I didn't think it was a big deal."

"Oh yeah. You cheating and me acting like something was wrong was no big deal. You really couldn't put that together?"

"Emily, ba-," He stopped. "I'm sorry. I don't know what else to say."

"I'm not sorry for hitting you." I wasn't sure how to feel anymore. The numbness melted away into something else. I wasn't sure what it was. "I wouldn't be either. I didn't appreciate it, but I think I understand." We stood there awkwardly until Jason asked, "So you really hate 'babe' that much?"

"You've no idea." We stared at each other a bit more before Jason walked up to me and kissed me. His arms were around me and I crushed myself against him. I had missed this. So much. But this was different, hungry. I felt the truth of what he had said through the kiss. It was a tangible thing present in his being. I realized it must have been a part of the blackout thing. "Jason." I gasped, breaking the kiss. I was too relieved to know he was telling the truth to say anything about how I felt. "Forgive me?" He asked. "Please?" I leaned against his chest, wrapped in his arms and sighed. "Yes. I do. But, Jason?"

"Yeah?"

"Make sure to tell me if something like this ever happens again. Even if you don't think it's a big deal. You don't know how others see things. Just, please," I looked up at him. "I don't think I can do this again."

"I promise, Em. It won't." Jason leaned down and kissed me again. It was light, gentle, sweet. But deep down, I still hurt. I had been broken and I wasn't going to be put back together so easily. Not even by knowing the truth. But this had been a start. Jason let me go, and I grabbed my lunch box from where I'd thrown it upon entering the theater. I opened it up and was about to eat when I noticed how grimy the bandages on my hands were from a half day full of notes. I grabbed some bandages out of my backpack and told Jason that I'd be right back. "You want some help with that?" Jason asked. He grabbed my hands gently and kissed the tips of my fingers. "I'm fine." I answered.

"I love you." Jason called.

I looked back at him as I walked to the green room, "I know." I opened the door to the girls changing room. I walked to the back of it and opened the bathroom door. I carefully took off the old bandages and washed my fingertips then dried them off. There were stitches in my hands where rather large pieces of glass had sliced my palms open. I re-wrapped my hands with new bandages and threw the old ones away. I walked back into the changing room and stopped when I heard a voice, quietly singing. There were words that I couldn't make out, it was so soft. There was anger, and sorrow, and most of all, pain, in it. Tears came to my eyes. How could something so beautiful, create such a feeling? How could it have so much pain? When it faded, I waited a moment to see if it would start up again. When I didn't, I walked around the room, looking for a phone or IPod that someone had accidentally left in there. I looked for about five minutes before admitting defeat. I had no idea what that music was so I started toward the door of the dressing room when I thought I heard it again. I ran to the wall that it seemed to be emanating out of. I couldn't see anything that it could be coming from. I waited for it to stop, and then waited for a good while to be sure it was over, before walking out into the green room, and straight into Nathan's waiting arms.

* * *

 **And there we have it. The end of the cliffhanger and the beginning of a new one. Okay. Now I really need to go to bed so this is the last update of the day. I hope you enjoy!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey everyone! MERRY CHRISTMAS! Here's a Christmas update. It's not very Christmasy, but oh well. Enjoy! (Oh and by the way, I didn't realize that I had not posted the 8th chapter. Oops. Sorry. So. Yeah.)**

* * *

 **Chapter 9**

"Oh, sorry." He held me at arm's length as his face turned bright red.

"It's fine. What are you doing back here, Nathan? Jason's in the house if you're looking for him." I wondered if he was the person who had been singing.

"Nothing. Just wanted to see if he was back here. Was that you singing? It was amazing."

I guess that answered my question. I shook my head, "It was wasn't it? I couldn't find anyone around, though. I thought I was the only one back here."

"Oh, okay." We stood there a little longer, neither of us saying anything until I tried to make my excuses to get back to Jason. This whole situation felt weird. Nathan hardly ever came to the theater, even to look for Jason. Plus, he hadn't stopped staring at me since I bumped into him. "Well, I need to go back. Gotta finish eating before rehearsal… so… bye." I turned to leave, but Nathan grabbed my wrist. I looked back at him. "Is something wrong?" He had this strange look in his eyes as he pulled me back to him. "Stay with me." He whispered. His lips met mine. His grip on my arms was so tight as I tried to push him away. I managed to get free and I slapped him hard across the face. "What are you doing?"

"I can't let you go back to him. Not after-," He cut himself off.

"It was you. You've been-," Nathan jerked me back to him and covered my mouth and nose with his hand. I felt some sort of cloth over my face and when I tried to breathe, all I could get was the sickly sweet smell of something that began to overpower my senses. No! What was he-? Why? My vision went blurry and blackness started to creep up on me. I felt my knees give way and I collapsed in Nathan's arms. He kept his hand firmly in place, looking down at me with a mixture of joy, terror, and- was that sorrow? The room began to spin as Nathan released me, picked me up and carried me away through the back hallway that served as our backstage waiting area. I couldn't keep my eyes still. I was fighting hard not to pass out. The next thing I knew was that I was being strapped into the back seat of a car. I heard a door slam, an engine start up, and then- nothing. I was out.

My world was black for a moment. Then there were stars all around me. They were shining brightly, more brightly than any stars seen from earth. But, they were moving? I strained to see why they were moving and got nothing. I wished they were closer and to my surprise, they zoomed up to me. I saw that they weren't stars, but memories. I realized that I was in the midst of another blackout. But I had never seen memories like this. Not in this form. I wanted to see if there were any memories that would tell me why Nathan would drug and kidnap me. Some of the memories blinked out. There were still a few left and they shone even more brightly than before. I looked at one and watched what was happening. It was me and Jason, sitting together. It was mostly focused on me. I went to a different memory. It was harder to see so I reached out to touch it. I grabbed hold and suddenly I was in it. It was a lot clearer and I could feel the emotions. Jason had his arm around me and we were all laughing and talking. I (Nathan) felt overpowering jealousy. Why couldn't Emily want me (Nathan)? I was as good as Jason, wasn't I? Of course you're not, a little voice nagged in the back of my head. You'll never be good enough. You want her but you don't have the guts to take her. You'll always be second best to your 'best' friend. If you want her, take her. I (Emily) let go of the memory.

I looked at all of the memories, they were all similar. They were all of me, Jason, and Nathan together. I hadn't realized we had hung out as much as we had. I didn't understand why so many of these were so strong in feeling. But I did recognize some. They were all from the earlier part of the semester. Except for the last one. I didn't touch this one for very long. Too many conflicting things at once and it made my head spin. The second to last memory was of Nathan staring at a phone. It looked like one of the cheap ones you buy from Walmart. I thought Nathan had had an iPhone so I didn't get what I was experiencing for a second. Nathan called Jason's number. I recoiled from the memory when I realized what was happening. Nathan was my stalker. Those seemingly familiar memories were all times Nathan and I had interacted past a few words. I made myself look at the last memory. Nathan had Jason and me in the car. I couldn't hear what was going on. I reached out and I was flooded with emotions. I (Nathan) could hear the tapping as Jason and Emily messaged back and forth. I couldn't help the overwhelming satisfaction I felt because she was angry at him. She was so angry. And hurt. That cut some of the happiness. I tried making some small talk, but no one was biting. The jealousy I had tried so hard to erase came creeping back. She was still talking to him, after everything I had done, even after trying to show her how much of a crappy person Jason was, they were still talking. Take her. The voice spoke again. Take her soon. Soon. I (Emily) released my hold and heaved in a breath. I was going to be sick. Could one get sick in a blackout induced vision? The memories started to fade, slowly blinking out as I regained consciousness.

I opened my eyes and tried to blink away the hazy blur that was my surroundings. When my vision cleared, I had to force myself to breathe steadily. The taste of pennies after being drugged- with chloroform I realized- was going to make me sick. Looks like chemistry class came in handy for identifying drugs used for my kidnaping. I laid where I was until I felt like I could sit up without heaving. Where was I? The room I was in was tiny in width, but longer in length. If I could have stood up, then I would have been able to stretch my arms out and touch the walls with my fingertips. There was room enough for the twin cot I was lying on and a small table and chair in one of the far corners. A single naked light bulb gleamed dimly from the ceiling. There were two doors on opposite walls. One at the end of the cot, and the other behind the table. There weren't any windows. I forced myself to get up. I stood for a moment, waiting for the room to stop spinning. I used the wall as a brace and made my way to the door closest to me. It was locked. I went to the other at the back of the room and tried the door knob. It opened. I looked inside and was met with darkness. I felt along the wall for a light switch. When I found one, I flipped it and the room was lit by a dim bulb. It was a bathroom. There was dust everywhere. I took a step in and had to cover my face with my shirt, so much dust flew up. I choked and stepped back out. I flipped off the light and closed the door. I tried to open the other one again. It was still locked from the outside but looked very flimsy. I backed up and rammed my shoulder against the door. I did it again and again until my shoulder was bruised and aching. The seemingly 'flimsy' door only had a slight dent in it. I thought a good kick would knock it open and was just about to try, when I heard footsteps coming from the other side of the door. I quickly scooted back to the cot and tried to lie back down without it creaking. I succeeded (I don't know how) and closed my eyes as soon as the door opened.

"I could have sworn..." I heard Nathan say. I heard the door close. More footsteps. He was next to me. I flinched when his fingertips touched the side of my face. "So you were trying to get out. Get up." I opened my eyes and sat up. I couldn't feign unconsciousness and get away with it. He wasn't an idiot, for everything else he might be.

"Why?" I asked. He looked away from me.

"I really like you, Emily. I'm just tired of watching Jason and you. I want you. I need you."

His face changed. He smiled wryly.

"I'm jealous. I'd rather take you away from him than spend another day watching you two act all-," he stopped and clenched his fists. "Anyway. I decided that I had had enough. So now I have you. And I won't let you go. Especially not to him."

"So it was you..." I whispered, just to confirm what I already knew.

"Of course it's me." I shifted under his unrelenting gaze.

"Nathan... why do you think that kidnaping me would change anything? Other than the fact that I now think you're crazy." I blinked. Why did I just say that? Nathan's jaw tightened and then, something changed. It wasn't a change that I liked. He looked ravenous. He stepped toward me and pulled me up. He spun me around and pinned me against the wall. "I guess we'll have to change that." His fingers brushed my lips and I turned away. I used that moment to glance behind him. I felt a spark of hope flare up. He had left the door open. He grabbed my chin and forced me to look at him. "Em. Just make this easy. You can't go anywhere." He stroked my cheek and leaned towards me. He softly brushed a kiss against my jaw. He released my arm and I grabbed my chance. I shoved him out of the way and sprinted out the door. I slammed it shut behind me and turned the lock. I heard him curse.

I quickly looked around, scrambling for an escape. I was in what I assumed was an apartment somewhere. It was small and plain enough. Books lay sprawled across the small table in the kitchen area. Nathan must have realized he had a key because I heard him trying to unlock the door. I ran to what was obviously the front door, made apparent by the three deadbolts above the handle. Nathan had been well prepared. They were made to be opened by a key. I nearly cried, but spotted the key hanging on the wall. I grabbed it and heard Nathan escape. "Emily, no. Stop!" I had gotten two open when Nathan grabbed me from behind and he hissed angrily, "Got you." I elbowed out of his grip and started to open the deadbolt. "Just let me go!" I pleaded.

He jerked me backward and I fell. My breath left me as I made contact with the floor. I was still struggling to breathe when Nathan picked me up and slung me over his shoulder. That made trying to inhale harder. Stars and black spots popped up in front of my eyes. Nathan carried me back to the room I had been in and set me on the cot. I leaned over and took a huge breath. The stars gradually faded as I breathed. "Please, let me go." I gasped. He didn't answer. He left the room and came back a few moments later. He had two zip-ties. He shoved me down and cinched my hands to the metal rail above my head. Tight enough to grab at my skin whenever I moved. "Now where were we?"

Nathan made the mistake of not tying my feet down, too. When he leaned towards me again, I shoved my feet into his stomach. His breath left him in a whoosh and he doubled over and fell on the floor. I tried to get up and drag the cot to the door. Nathan managed to pull the door closed from where he was on the floor. I decided to try and kick it down. The door had been weakened from the times I rammed it with my shoulder and crumpled under contact with my foot. I ran out as best I could with a cot tied to my hands. I didn't get far. The cot wouldn't fit through the door, I figured out, when my arms were jerked painfully away from my body. I almost fell over but caught myself and managed to turn the cot sideways. I glanced at Nathan, who was still struggling to breathe. I ran to the kitchen and tried to grab a knife from the knife block. I couldn't reach it the way my hands were tied. Since he had used only one zip-tie per hand, I slid them painfully around together so that I could even get close to the knife block to attempt to grab a knife. I lifted the cot and managed to grab one. I angled it in between the small space between my skin and the cot frame. I gasped when I nicked my wrist but the pain was nothing compared to the relief I felt when the tie snapped. I cut the other tie and ran to the door. I got the first two locks open again when Nathan staggered out of the room. I was turning the last deadbolt when Nathan grabbed my waist and tried to drag me away from the door. I had a death grip on the doorknob and started kicking, trying to get free. He let go with one hand and I used that opportunity to twist free. I finished turning the bolt and opened the door. Someone was on the other side, ready to knock. I managed "Help-," before something collided with the side of my head and stars flew in front of my eyes and my vision melted into black.

* * *

 **Aaand there it is. I probably won't update until New Years. So until then, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a Happy New Year! I hope everyone has a great holiday!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey! Thanks so much for the reviews guys! Melstrife and Queenofthenight82, thanks for the encouragement! It means a lot! A bunch happens in this chapter. A BUNCH. Lots of things. Enjoy! (enjoy might be the wrong word because this isn't a particularly happy chapter by any means...)**

* * *

 **Chapter 10**

Ty. Ty was- he was- who? Someone had been at the door. Who was it? I tried to reach up to brush my bangs out of my face. My arms wouldn't move. I tried to lift my head up to see why and I almost blacked out from the pain. My head slammed against the metal frame of the cot when I fell backwards. I laid there, semi-conscious, and eventually succumbed to the taunting darkness at the edges of my vision.

When I awoke again, I sat up as far as I could, slowly. My head throbbed and I felt weak. I remembered what had happened and why my head hurt. I looked at my arms. They were tied down in two places: my wrists, and my forearms. My ankles had been tied down, too. It was so tight; it was at the point where I could hardly move because of the pain. I wriggled my arm and watched as blood seeped out from underneath the tie. That was when I noticed the blood on the bottom of my jeans. Nathan must have been furious when he caught me. Why else would I be left like this? I looked around slowly. And groaned. I was in the same room as before. What was going to happen to me? Why was all of this crap happening _now_?

My stomach growled and I winced with the pain of my hollow belly. How long had it been since I had last eaten? I had no idea how long I had been unconscious. I didn't even know what day it was. When I had tried to escape, I hadn't even noticed if the window blinds were open and if any light had been shining through or if there were any windows at all. It wouldn't have helped much anyways. I laid back, considering there wasn't anything else I could do, but carefully this time. I didn't want to knock myself unconscious again. I must have dozed off, because when my eyes opened again, Nathan was sitting in the chair. Watching me. "Why are you doing this?" I asked. He was silent for a moment, and then he said, "Do you know what it's like to watch your best friend get everything you ever wanted?" He shifted in the chair. "I only wanted you to love me, Emily. Like I love you. That's not too much to ask, is it?" I was about to speak when my stomach made an embarrassingly loud noise that sounded like a dying whale.

"Hungry?" Nathan asked. I nodded. He leaned forward and reached over at me. I flinched. He paused, gently stroked the side of my face and got up. "I'll be back." I wouldn't look at him. I heard him walk around a bit and then heard him slam the door as he left the apartment. I lay back and let a few tears escape to wet the hair at my temples. I had to make myself stop, otherwise I risked losing all control. And that was something I couldn't afford. I had to get out. I eased myself back up and looked around for something I could maybe use to get free. There was nothing. Absolutely nothing. I closed my eyes in defeat. I was stuck here. With a crazy lunatic that seemed to think captivity was the way to make me love him as a person.

I shifted my arms in an attempt to get in a slightly more comfortable position than I was in. I winced at the movement, then felt something snap. I looked down at my arm in disbelief. The tie had broken from around my left wrist. I felt the underside of the cot frame amd nearly cried with relief. The cot had been broken at some point and repaired, but not well. There was a rough protuberance that had managed to saw through the tie. I tried to slide my arm down to try and cut through the remaining zip tie. I got a few inches but had to stop because of the pain. My forearm was bleeding freely now, along with a couple of places on my wrist. With every twist of my left arm, more blood oozed out from under the tie. I started to feel light headed. It coated my arm and the cot and I felt my skin slide a little bit over the metal. It hurt like crazy but it was progress of a sort. I paused. Was it really worth this pain to try and get away when I probably wouldn't be able to make it out the front door?

I had to try. I tugged at my arm again and managed to slide it down to the spot. Tears streamed down my face as I pulled my arm back and forth. I let out a soft cry. I couldn't do this, it hurt too much, I wasn't going to be able to do this, I couldn't- can't- can't! With a final yell, I sawed through the tie. While trying not to black out, I screamed without making a sound. I cried at the ceiling, tears streaming down my face. Had it been worth it? My arm was a bloody mess, chafed from the zip ties and rubbing it against the metal. I still had to free my other arm and my ankles. I took a breath and made myself think. How could I get out of here? There was a way. There had to be.

I was still for a solid minute when I thought of it. I stretched my hand out, reaching for the ties that had fallen to the floor. The first one had fallen too far under the cot to reach. The second one, though, that was just barely in range of my fingertips. I edged it closer and finally got it near enough to pick up. I slowly maneuvered the ties on my other arm around so that the bit that connected one end to the other was facing the ceiling. I stuck one end of the broken tie into the locking mechanism, trying to get it to release. When it did, I moved on to the one on my wrist, and then on to my ankles. It took a lot longer than I would have liked, and I knew I was running out of time before Nathan would return from wherever he went. I swung my legs over the side of the cot and stood up. I dropped to my knees as all the blood rushed from my head and left me dizzy and seeing spots. I waited for the blood to circulate as regularly as it could with my bleeding and now throbbing arms and ankles. I wiped my tears away with my better arm, held back the rest of the ones that wanted to fall, got up and went to the door. I stared at it. The door frame was new, so was the rest of the door. When had Nathan fixed it? Just how long had I been out? I shook off these thoughts, I didn't have enough time. I carefully peered out into the rest of the apartment. I couldn't see anyone, so I tried to bolt for the door, but my ankles hurt too much to run. I had limped my way to the door when I realized the key was gone. He had taken it with him. I turned away, frustration and anger starting to replace everything else. I had had my phone when I was taken, so it had to be here somewhere. I rubbed my neck, gingerly. It had been sore ever since I woke up. As I walked around, searching, I had to stop because of the incredible exhaustion that washed over me. "That can't be good." I murmured. I limped around kitchen, searching through drawers. Still nothing. I opened the only other door in the main room. It led into Nathan's room. The blinds were open, clothes were everywhere, the bed was unmade and Nathan's backpack was slung across it. It was very similar to Jason's room, actually. I slowly turned around, taking it all in. This didn't look like the room of a crazy stalker. It looked normal. There had been one thing bugging me from the first time I woke up. Where were his parents? Why was he alone? I limped to the desk near the window. A journal lay open on it. I picked it up and skimmed a few pages. An emotion I hadn't expected brought a lump to my throat. Pity.

Nathan had suffered from abuse from both of his parents as a child and was emancipated from them a few years ago. He wrote about the freedom he got to taste for the first time when the judge declared him emancipated. He was going to drop high school and get his GED when someone changed his mind. Me. Apparently, I had told him that he was capable enough to complete high school and work a full time job. I had told him I believed he could do it. He wrote that that was something no one had ever told him before. The next sentence broke my heart.

 _I think I found someone who could love me._

I paused in my reading. I remembered. I had no idea about the situation, but I knew that he was considering dropping out. I had offered to help. I set his journal back on the desk and turned around. I forgot all semblance of pity when I realized I was looking at something that made my heart drop. The doorway was surrounded by pictures. Of me. From Facebook, Instagram, school archive photos from shows we had done in the past, some I didn't even recognize. Most of them were candid. I wasn't looking toward the camera in most of them. Many were from school, in the hallway or me going into the theater. Some of the others, though, were of me at my dorm room, my home. And they were recent. I recognized an outfit that I had worn a week ago. I held my hand up to my mouth, suddenly nauseous. I bent over, sucking in air, hands on my knees. I wasn't going to get out of here. I struggled to get my breathing under control. When I felt like I could stand without keeling over, I made myself rummage around through his dresser and nightstand to try and find my phone.

I opened the first drawer. Nothing but t-shirts. The second, shorts and the like, and so on and so forth until I had checked all the dresser drawers. I prayed I could find my phone in the nightstand and realized that he had probably dumped it, if he was smart. (I watch a lot of crime shows, okay?) I opened the bottom drawer. Empty. The middle one had a bunch of knickknacks and stuff that probably hadn't seen the light of day in years. The top drawer. "Please." I whispered. It creaked as I eased it open and sifted through all of the junk. Nothing. No phone. I knelt down, numbness threatening to overtake me, and dizziness making me lightheaded. I forced myself to stand up, to keep looking until I had exhausted all possible places my phone could be, or until Nathan came back, in which I would have to come to terms that I would probably have to defend myself by whatever means possible. I stumbled over my own foot and fell onto his bed. And I saw it. My phone had been hidden under one of the two pillows at the head of the mattress. I grabbed it and tried to turn it on. I could call Jason. He knew where Nathan lived and could call the police. It slowly powered up. Had it always taken this long? It finally showed the home screen and I tried to type in the password to unlock it, but my fingers weren't doing what I wanted. Something was wrong with me, and it wasn't just because I was hungry. I slowly tapped out the numbers that unlocked my phone. I staggered back into the main room, hope returning as I managed to get to the missed calls screen. I heard keys rattle and the locks turn as I pressed Jason's name. I stood there, stupidly, in the middle of the room with my phone pressed to my ear. It kept ringing. Nathan walked in the door carrying McDonald's. He dropped the bag and stared at me. My phone was still ringing.

"How did you get out?" He caught sight of my phone and fright replaced surprise. He stepped towards me and grabbed my wrist. I gasped in pain as he tightened his hold on my broken skin. I was forced to my knees as Nathan tore my phone from my grip. I heard Jason pick up. "Emily? Where are you-?" I cut him off yelling weakly, "Jason, it's-," and Nathan cut off the call. He slammed my phone onto the floor where he stomped on it with his foot. "Emily, why would you do that?" Nathan's grip on my wrist tightened and I sobbed. I looked up at him and was terrified by what I saw in his eyes. I weakly pulled at his hand encircling my wrist. "Let go- hurts-," I gasped. "Please." He blinked and something cleared. He looked at his hand holding my arm and let me go as if I burned him. "Oh my g-, Emily. What did you do?" I collapsed on the floor, cradling my arm. It burned. When Nathan pulled me up, he grasped my forearms and sent me whimpering with pain that made me even more lightheaded than I already was. It was ungodly painful and ten times worse than when I had maneuvered it out from under the zip-tie. I stood there, trying to breathe as waves of pain hit me over and over again. He caught me as I fell against him. I was wheezing now; I could hear myself. It was a weird sound that didn't seem like it should be coming from my mouth.

Alarmed, he let go of me and I made one last attempt to escape. I stepped toward the door, but I didn't make it two steps. My last hint of hope died when Nathan just took my other arm gently and restrained me. I had known it was pointless, trying to escape again, but I had to try. The fact that my freedom was gone and that my arm was damaged with what felt like would be beyond repair, finally sent the rest of my tears pouring down my face. I was surprised that they hadn't been falling again before now.

I looked up at Nathan and pleaded with him, "Please. Let me go." He looked conflicted, which I'm sure would have sent some gratification through me had I not been bent over my arm in agony. "I-I can't. You would tell someone. But, Em, I don't even care about that. I don't want to let you go. I need you." My eyes grew leaden with what was starting to become a familiar heaviness as the pain and nausea took over and released me into unconsciousness.

* * *

There were eyes watching me. They glowed. And then I was alone. My arms were curiously absent of pain and I wasn't sure if I was dreaming or if I was awake. The eyes appeared again accompanied by a voice, deep and soothing, chanting something I couldn't quite hear. It stopped and for a second there was silence, and then, "It will be okay, Emily, my love. I won't let him keep you." The chant continued and light began swirling around me, sending bright sparks of yellow light out into the darkness. Color began to flash as I woke up and I heard a whisper as my surroundings began to make sense. "I am coming for you."

* * *

I tensed up as awareness returned to me in full. I'd had a weird dream, but I couldn't remember what it was about. There were lights, a voice, but that's all I could recall. I gazed up at the ceiling, despair setting in as I remembered what had caused my return to the darkness. I was stuck in the same small, dusty, old room that I had been in for who knows how long. I sat up, relieved to find I had some range of motion, but instantly regretted it when my head began to pound. I guessed I was dehydrated, but I was still exhausted, too, for all the out time I seemed to be getting lately.

The dust in the room was thick in the air and I felt a tremendous sneeze tickle my nose. I reached up out of habit and rubbed my nose with my left hand. It took me a moment before I realized what I had done. I looked down and saw the bloody bandages that wrapped a couple of places on my arms. But there was no pain. I carefully peeled back the edges from my hand and was met by clean skin. I unraveled the bindings from my wrists and forearms and gaped in awe. My skin was completely whole and unbroken. I traced my arm with a fingertip, expecting some pain, but felt only the tickle of skin against skin. I had been healed. I turned my arm, still unbelieving. There was something strange on my left wrist. I couldn't quite make out what it was the first time I tried to look at it. I rotated my arm to try and get a better angle and I realized what it was. A tiny rose in full bloom had been tattooed or branded in the hollow of my wrist. It looked like it had always been there. It was white, which made it hard to see unless the light caught it right. Was this Nathan's idea of a sick joke? The roses on my car, now this? I attempted to stand, appalled by how weak I was, all thoughts of the rose leaving my mind. Why did I stand up again? The door. I reached for the doorknob and found it unlocked, but before I could leave I was hit by the urgent need to use the restroom.

I stumbled along the wall to the bathroom door and flipped on the light. I tugged my shirt over my nose to try and filter some of the dust and did what my body had been denied for who knows how long. How I even lasted as long as I had, I had no idea. I turned on the faucet and rinsed my hands. Then I stuck my face under the running water and let the cool liquid run across my tongue and down my throat. I drank deeply, feeling somewhat better, but my head still ached, as did my neck, and I was still so, so tired. My stomach clenched and I whirled around and threw up everything I had just drank into the toilet. I fell against the wall and struggled to twist the doorknob. I needed to hurry. But why? What was I doing here? "Emily!" I heard, and then I was slammed into the wall. "Emily." Arms were around me, holding me in place. "Nathan." I murmured. I could barely keep my eyes open. "I thought you had gotten away, and I-," he stopped. I managed to get my eyes to focus enough to see the alarm on his face as he registered my state of being. "Are you okay? Emily?" His lips were moving, but there was no sound. "I forgive you." I whispered, and pitched forward into a silence so dark and complete, I knew there was no getting out.

* * *

I didn't mean for this to happen. It wasn't supposed to go this way. I didn't even mean to hit her that first time. I thought she was okay. Yeah, she was out for too long, but, I couldn't do this to her. I wouldn't. I love her. _She hasn't eaten or drunk anything in days. You finally get her and now you're killing her. You never could hold on to anything you loved. You always drove it away. It's what you do_. "No." Not this time. I would let her go because it was the right thing to do. It was the only thing to do.

I couldn't live in a world where she wasn't in it.

Even if that means simply knowing she's alive.

It would have to be enough.

I scooped her up in my arms. Were girls supposed to feel this light? I stood there for a moment and realized how sick she really was. The dark circles under her eyes made how thin her face was even more prominent. She was pale, and the bruise on her temple seemed to glare at me. And her arms, I couldn't think about them right now. Not about how when I was bandaging them, they started to heal by themselves. It was too weird.

I opened the door of the little room and carried her out and down the stairs of my building. Her breath was so shallow. I unlocked my car and carefully strapped her into the passenger seat. I allowed myself one last look at her face. She was beautiful. So beautiful. I kissed her, carefully. For the second and what I knew would be the last time. Her lips were so cold. Then I got into the driver's seat and sped toward the hospital.

* * *

 **Lots of things, see? Next update soon! I'm going to give up on giving exact dates, because I work on chapters and get them done way before my deadline. So. Update soon! Bye! :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey y'all! Here it is! I will be posting a couple of chapters tonight, including this one in celebration of NEW YEARS! WOOOOOO! (And, in response to a question for the last chapter, it isn't that she was out for so long that her wounds healed on their own, it is part of the supernatural bit of this story, along with her connection to others' memories. So her dream, and the chanting, that all really happened. [But it wasn't Nathan] :) Do I need to make that clearer in the previous chapter? Or do you all think that it is fine as it it? I want it to be clear that it is some supernatural force healing her... Does that make sense? Thanks for the feedback! Especially you, Melstrife!:))**

* * *

 **Chapter 11**

I woke up in the hospital. I couldn't remember how I had gotten there. I had no idea what was going on. I was attached to several different machines and an IV. When I tried to speak, all that came out was a raspy croak. The nurse in my room looked familiar. Becky. From before. She was sitting in a chair next to me, half asleep when I made my attempt to talk. She was suddenly very alert and got up and left my field of vision. I was still too weak to move much, so I lay there, still. She reappeared with a glass of water in one hand. She grabbed the bed's remote control and sat me up. She helped me take a sip of the water and began speaking to me. "You gave us all a scare, my dear. How you manage to end up in all of these crazy situations is beyond me. Stitches a week and a half ago, and now being treated for dehydration, malnutrition, and a nasty concussion. Speaking of which, how's your noggin feeling, dearie?"

I did a quick self-assessment. "Much better, I think." I rasped. Becky helped me to take another drink. "What happened?" I asked. "I don't remember how I got here." She gave me a sharp glance. I clarified. "I know Nathan is the reason I'm here, but-," my voice broke and I coughed, weakly. Another sip, and Becky started explaining. "He drove you here." I gaped at her. "At first we thought he had found you like that, but then he confessed everything. That's how we knew to check for a concussion. He got you here in the nick of time, too. Another half hour and I'm not sure we would be talking, dearie. He's now in custody, you know. So don't worry about anything. Just start recovering." Becky gave me a small smile and helped me finish the glass of water and then left to go update the doctor on my condition. Nathan had given up? After everything? After all of that pain and terror? Maybe there was something more to his obsession than just obsession. I let that thought go before I could really pursue what that might mean. I didn't need to think about it. I was free, safe, and recovering. Nathan had apparently had a stroke of clear judgement and turned himself in. My eyes drifted closed as I wandered down my mind's eye and I dozed off.

* * *

I was woken by the doctor gently shaking my shoulder. "Miss Amare. How are you feeling?" I blinked and took a deep breath. I was pain free and only a little sore. "Great. Best I've felt in days." The doctor, Jameson by his nametag, smiled and I noted the relief on his face. "Did I really scare you all that much?" I asked, half joking. His face became grave as the smile left his eyes. "You were reported missing a week ago today, Emily. And from what we were told, you were only conscious for a few hours of that time. You could have been seriously injured. Actually, Emily, it's something of a miracle that we are even talking right now. Your concussion should be totally gone by our evaluations and all you should be feeling right now are the lingering effects of the dehydration and malnutrition." His eyes softened as he looked down at me. "I'm glad you're okay, Emily. You've been through a lot lately. Rest." With that, he touched my shoulder and rose from his seat. He gave me a gentle smile that I returned and he left me alone with my thoughts. I subsequently ignored everything that jumped to the front of my mind, still too tired to really make sense of everything. I closed my eyes and napped until Becky returned to check on me.

After that, it was a quick process of getting me back on my feet and back to school. I might have helped it along by pretending I was feeling better than I was. A couple of police officers came into my hospital room as I was preparing to be checked out. They asked me routine questions and when I had satisfied them, Doctor Jameson came in to give me leave to go. Deputy McMillan and her partner offered to give me a ride back to my house. During the trip, she told me that there wasn't a trial date. That would be set when my parents returned. She had made the call to my school's principal and told him what had happened. He said my teachers wouldn't say anything to anyone and that I had been excused from the days I missed. I laughed, somewhat bitterly. After all that, they were just worried about attendance.

McMillan called my parents right there in my driveway. She gave them a brief summary and assured them that I was okay. She then handed the cell phone to me. I had to hold the phone away from my ear, my parents were both yelling so loudly. They were talking at the same time and told me that if they could, they would change the date of their plane ticket so they could come home early. They said they loved me and that I had to give them the full run down when they got home. My dad yelled that. He sounded like he wanted to kill Nathan. And he probably did. This wasn't something so easily forgotten. I managed to switch the conversation around into asking if I could buy a new phone since mine had been destroyed. They agreed wholeheartedly and I soon said my goodbyes, promising that I was fine and that I would get Abby to stay the night with me. I made the trip to the phone store and purchased a new iPhone on my dad's emergency card he always left me whenever they went out of country. I got my contacts transferred wirelessly and spent the next couple of hours reading through messages that I had been forced to ignore last week. I waited on replying to any of them, though. I wasn't sure how to answer the majority.

Later that day, my parents called me on my new phone. My mom was crying saying that she and my dad couldn't get their tickets switched. I told them again that I was fine. They needed to stay and finish their business there. My mom reluctantly agreed and said she loved me and couldn't wait to see me. We said good-bye and hung up. The rest of the day went by in a blur. I thought about texting Abby to see if she could come stay with me, but decided I needed to be alone with myself for a while. I didn't think I could stand the thought of anyone near me. I had tolerated it at the hospital because it was necessary. But now, the thought of anyone with me, touching me in any way at all, made my skin crawl. I ended up lying in bed with my phone, tediously answering every message, explaining to some extent and stressing the need to be alone and to not be bothered for the rest of the day. I fell asleep clutching my old teddy bear, whose security I hadn't needed in a long time. Tonight, though, I needed something that kept me here, anchored to reality and secure in the fact that where I was, was safe.

* * *

The next morning found me driving to Jason's house to pick him up for school.

-Me: Here.-

I waited only a moment before Jason came sprinting out of his home. He slid into the passenger seat and grabbed me in a hug. I tensed up, hating that I hated it. Right as I was about to tell him I couldn't deal with _touch_ right now, when he let go and bombarded me with questions. "Emily, are you okay? Oh man, Em, I was so worried. I called the police right after you didn't show back up for class. Em. What happened? The police called me Sunday and told me you had been found and then I got your message last night and nearly drove over to you, but you said you needed to be alone, and Emily," he stopped speaking and just looked at me with this intensity that made me miss his arms around me, suddenly made me okay. "Emily, I just want to know if you're okay." I looked over at him and burst into tears. Immediately, his arms were cradling me, rocking me. He made soft soothing noises as he pressed his lips against my forehead.

Eventually, I calmed down enough to relate the barest details to him. I ended with, "And Jason, I can barely stand this, right now. You holding me, even though I need it. I can barely deal with it."

Jason became still. "Did he- touch you? Emily? Did he hurt you?"

I had never heard Jason's voice so cold. I swallowed. "Not, not exactly." Jason pulled away a little and stared me directly in the eyes. "Did. He. Hurt. You." There was anger in his eyes, yes, but there was terror, too, and overwhelming sorrow. "Yes." I whispered. Jason pulled me back into his embrace as I broke down again. "He- he said he loved me. And then he kissed me, or tried to. I shoved him away and got to the door. But, I fell and got my breathe knocked out of me. He tied me to the cot, but I got a knife- and- and then when I tried to run away again, I think he hit me. I mean, well, I don't really remember. I was up at the door, and- and then I was tied to the cot." I felt Jason struggling to keep his calm appearance, but I could hear his heart pounding. "After that, one of the ties broke and I got out of the others. That's when I called you. I found my phone but then he came back and it hurt so much when he grabbed my arms I passed out." Jason took one of my hands, gently, and turned it over, looking for evidence. "Em, there's nothing there."

"I dreamed. When I woke up, my arms didn't hurt, but my head did, there was a rose on my arm that I don't remember how- and after that-," I paused to take a deep breath. "I woke up in the hospital." I stared down at the faint rose on my wrist, tracing its outline. For all it reminded me of, I didn't hate it. I thought it was beautiful. It was the beginning of something new, an end to everything before.

"A rose, Em? What do you mean?" I turned my arm toward him to show him. "Just there. The light has to catch it." I showed him. Jason reached over to touch my wrist, but both of us were shocked and jumped apart. Jason rubbed his hand, "Dang."

I looked over at him. The pity in his eyes made me swallow hard and put my car in reverse. I backed out of his driveway and drove the way to school in silence. Honestly, this wasn't how I'd imagined seeing him after all this would be.

When we got to school and started walking to the building, Jason grabbed my hand and was promptly shocked again. "Ow!" I snatched my hand away. "Let's just walk, okay? I'm not sure I'm really up for more physical contact right now. Not when it's this… painful." Jason winced. We didn't speak for the remainder of the walk into the building. Then we went our separate ways.

* * *

My first few classes were surprisingly quiet. No one asked me what happened, just how I was, and did I need any help with the assignments, or was I sure I got what we were going over. That all changed when I got to musical rehearsal. I was swarmed by friends all inquiring how I was and asking what had happened. Even Mrs. Radley asked me if I was good to go with rehearsal later today and she offered to let me sit out and watch. "Thanks, but I need to get back into it. I'll go easy." I smiled at her, and she sent me off to get changed. Our costumes had arrived today (talk about lucky timing) and we were going through them all, trying them on and then parading around with them on stage to get Mrs. Radley's approval.

My first thought when trying on my first costume was, well, at least I don't have to worry about losing weight anymore. It stopped me in my tracks. That was incredibly morbid. I shrugged those thoughts off and I walked out on stage and shivered with excitement. It was starting to feel real. Even after being gone, I knew I was ready for this.

Costume after costume got approved and finally, it was time for our next classes. I reluctantly shed my final gown, a white wedding dress that cascaded in tiers, and changed back into my regular clothes. I grabbed my bag from its resting place in the greenroom and exited through the back hallway. I had to stand there for a moment. I looked down the dim expanse of hall and shuddered. The last time I was here was when he took me. I forced myself to turn around and start walking to the doors leading to the traffic flow of students in the main hall. My hands were on the door when music caught my ear. I looked over my shoulder to see who was there. "Christine... my Emily..." I heard, faintly. The words floated around the air and faded into nothingness as if they had never been. They were so low and melancholy. I turned and listened for more. "Soon my love...," the voice sang. "Soon you will be with me." I took a few steps deeper into the hallway, searching for the voice's owner. "Hello? Is someone there?" I called, gently. Silence answered me. As I left, I realized that I hadn't seen Ty in class.

He wasn't there the next day either.

Or the next.

* * *

 **There you go! Next chapter soon! Happy New Year! Welcome 2017!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Ta-da!**

* * *

 **Chapter 12**

It had been five full days since I had returned to school. Five wonderful days where everything flowed smoothly, rehearsals were great (except for the fact that Ty had only been there for like two rehearsals and then only long enough for his scenes. He always managed to disappear right as I got a chance to try and talk to him.) Jason and I were, well, we were wonderful. Every once in a while though, if he tried to grab my left hand, both of us would get a nasty shock. It was getting annoying.

I walked downstairs to the refrigerator and pulled my rehearsal schedule away from the magnet that held it in place. There was one week until the play, which meant it was tech week. I was ecstatic. There were rehearsals every night this week for however long it took us to run through the musical twice with notes and reworks. It was going to be wonderful.

I opened up the fridge and scanned the contents. I needed to go shopping. I grabbed an apple and the jug of milk and sat down to eat after pouring myself a glass. Ty was worrying me. Mrs. Radley had said not to stress because she had gone through the whole musical with Ty already and that he was great, but it was still strange. I scanned through my contacts as I munched on my apple and stared at Ty's phone number for a minute before I hit call. The phone rang once, twice, three times before Ty picked up. "You going to be at school today, slacker?" I asked. "If you miss another rehearsal, you'll be fired as the Phantom." (Not likely, but I wanted to hear his reasoning behind missing so much. Hey, _I_ had a legitimate excuse. I mean, being kidnapped is a pretty legit reason for missing anything.) "Why? Did you miss me?" He laughed. "Yeah, I'm going to be at school today. Don't you worry, sweetheart."

I grimaced in embarrassment. "Sweetheart?"

"Kidding."

"Ty-?" I remembered something. It seemed like ages ago. "You weren't hurt when the lab table caught on fire a couple of weeks ago were you?"

A moment of silence and then, "No. I'm fine."

Relief swept through me. My Angel wasn't hurt.

My Angel? Where did that come from? I moved the thought away and asked, "Hey, can we maybe meet early this morning and run through some stuff? I'd like to practice before class time today."

"Anything for Miss Daaé." His deep voice purred in answer. I laughed and said, "Okay. See you at 7, then?"

"Works for me. Bye, sweetheart."

"Hey!" He hung up laughing. My cheeks were burning, but no longer from embarrassment. _I think I actually sort of like it when he calls me that._ I sat there, grinning like an idiot until I remembered I was going to be late if I didn't hurry up. I scarfed down the rest of my small breakfast and finished getting ready. I tried not to notice that I took a little longer than normal when applying my makeup. _It's not like I'm trying to impress anyone. Not really. It doesn't even matter that I haven't seen Ty in a couple of weeks. I'm just doing this because I want to look nice._ I threw my clothes on and rushed out the door. When the lights came on, shining onto my car, I paused, feeling like something was missing. No rose. I briefly closed my eyes and sighed. _It's done._ I slid into the driver's seat and reached behind me. All the roses I had gotten had all ended up thrown into the floor. I grabbed them all; they made quite the bouquet. Dead and dry, perhaps, but that wasn't why I wanted them. They all had a strip of paper rolled along the stems. _I should've asked Nathan about them. I mean, this is so weird._ I pulled each strip off and unrolled them. All of them said things like, _Brava!;_ _Well done, little Lottie;_ and _Sing, my Angel of Music_. All quotes from the musical. These didn't seem like something Nathan would do. Leave me roses with lines from the show, and then take me from it before it could be performed. That was just cruel, and I don't think cruel was what he was trying to be. I ended up throwing everything back into the back and driving to Jason's house. He was already waiting for me in his driveway. He got in the passenger's seat and buckled in. "Hey, sweetheart." What was with all the 'sweetheart's' today? I wasn't sure I liked it when Jason said it. It didn't give me the same feeling as when it came from Ty.

Problem there! I yelled at myself. You shouldn't be feeling anything to do with Ty!

"Did you figure out if Ty's gonna be at school today?" Jason's question snapped me out of my thoughts. "Yeah." I told him. "I'm meeting him early to practice the blocking since neither of us have really had a chance to work through everything together."

Jason nodded. "Alright." He glanced over at me, slyly. "You need me to help don't you?" He grinned at me mischievously. I laughed and said, "Sure."

We drove and chatted about nothing in particular, the subject changing randomly. When we arrived at school, we got out and walked to the theater together. Jason holding my right hand. Ty was already waiting, sitting in the front row of the house. "Hey, man." Jason called. "Why'd you miss so much? We needed you."

"Didn't see a reason to come. Besides, I did all of my work and I know all the stuff, so what's the point in wasting time here?" I looked hard at him. I had a feeling that he wasn't telling the truth. He was too blasé about it. But he hadn't lied about his face, it looked alluring as ever. Wait, what? First he's my Angel and now he's alluring? I must have been hit in the head harder than I thought. Jason and Ty both stared at me. "What?" They said simultaneously. I felt my face turn red at the realization that I had said that out loud. "Um- n-nothing." I rubbed my forehead. This was a great start to the day.

Jason looked confused by my odd statement that he may or may not have heard, but Ty looked somewhat pleased. I desperately hoped he hadn't understood what I meant. I felt my face burn hotter under his gaze. I hadn't even realized that I was talking aloud! I had never done that before. Why did this have to happen now? I was going to die of embarrassment and maybe get in another argument with Jason before the day had even begun. Wonderful.

"Um- shall we?" I asked, changing the subject; ready to get a move on things. Ty nodded and Jason sat down in the middle of the house, ready to direct if necessary. I was almost satisfied that he hadn't heard me and breathed a sigh of relief. Ty gave me an intense look and I gulped. _He_ had heard me. I took a deep bracing breath and then let it out. I was about to go on stage. And these feelings couldn't follow me onto there. They weren't a part of my character, therefore, I had to let them go.

Ty and I walked to the middle of the stage and we paced out through everything. Jason threw in a couple of pointers, correcting us when we made a small mistake. When we reached the end, we started over, jumping around to where we felt we needed the practice most. We ended up getting Jason on stage, since he was in so much of the blocking we had together. We rushed through the Point of No Return and went on to the quick bit where the Phantom is dragging me down back to his lair. And then we were there. The part when I had to kiss him. When we arrived at that part, I skipped it and just went on ahead, half singing the words. "Wait, wait, wait." Ty stopped us. "Don't you think we should practice that part, too?" A tiny smile lifted the corners of his mouth. "No- um- we don't have to- not now, I mean." I stammered, glancing at Jason, who was now trying, and failing, to keep a blank face. I would rather practice the kiss when Jason wasn't around, or just not at all. I didn't want him to watch. Especially not in the condition my heart and mind were in. I was scared of what it would do to me.

"Oh come on, Em. This is the perfect setting. Your 'love' is here watching and the play is a week away and we haven't practiced it yet. We'll have to eventually." He cajoled.

Normally, we would have practiced multiple times already, but considering I had been M.I.A. the week before, and Ty had been M.I.A. this last one, we hadn't gotten a chance. I looked over at Jason and saw him stiffly nod. I looked up at Ty and swallowed. After another quick glance at Jason, I tried to get into character and took Ty's face in my hands and kissed him. I tried to be quick and chaste.

It was dizzying. His warm scent and his surprisingly soft lips made me forget about it being a supposedly fast kiss and kept me in place for what seemed to be an eternity. I felt Ty wrap his arms around me and did nothing to stop him. I couldn't do anything, didn't want to do anything. Ty deepened it and I could hear the blood rushing through my ears. It created a low rhythm that seemed to underline the melody that sprang into my head. It felt like the very air around us was singing with energy.

When Jason coughed, I came back to myself and realized that the kiss had been going on for a long time. Too long. I forced myself to break contact and gasped for breath. Ty tried to close the distance but I stopped him, pushing him back a little saying, "I think that's enough for now..." But I had to force the words out of my mouth. I wanted to kiss him again. Ty looked over towards Jason and tried to keep a straight face, tried to keep the smirk from his lips. I followed his gaze and saw Jason standing red faced from jealousy or embarrassment, I don't know. He was glaring daggers at Ty. He didn't look too happy with me, either.

Why had I agreed to this? Why hadn't I tried to insist on waiting until we were alone, or at least away from Jason? I was stupid, this wasn't right, it shouldn't have happened; not like this. All my thoughts crashed together and I tried to back up only to find that I was still ensnared in Ty's arms. And he didn't seem willing to let me go either. He was tracing patterns on my back. I had to fight not to shiver. "Ty-," I choked out. Ty looked down at me, fire burning in his eyes. Mine, they said. I couldn't look away, try though I might. He had captured me.

As if sensing that I was in the midst of internal chaos, his arms released me, though his eyes held me there for a few seconds more. I quickly backed away a few feet. I stammered out a goodbye and tried not to run to my stuff I had thrown near the door. Jason caught up to me and gazed at me, his face now bearing a look I wasn't sure I could put a name to. It was like a combination of everything. Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed my shoulders. He pulled me to him and kissed me roughly. I made a surprised sound in the back of my throat. It was rough, and angry. I hated it. I found myself thinking for the second time, it wasn't right. It shouldn't have happened. Not like this. Not like this. I pushed Jason away, knowing that he only kissed me to tell Ty that he couldn't get anywhere with me. "Don't. Not right now." I whispered. It made me so mad that he felt he had to do that. I managed to glance over Jason's shoulder to see Ty watching us. He looked happy that I hadn't enjoyed that awkward kiss as much as I had his. I entered the hallway with Jason staring at me in bewilderment and with not a little hurt on his face. I felt his hand on my arm and I spun around to face him. "I don't care if he doesn't know that I'm yours." I tried to speak quietly. And calmly, but with the state my head was in, it wasn't likely that it would last very long. "You know. Don't you?" I tried pleading with my eyes, begging him to understand that I couldn't deal with anything right now. I was too broken right now. This shouldn't be happening. There was too much too soon, too quickly. I tore my gaze away from him as I whispered, "So please, don't doubt me."

Jason angrily answered back, "You kiss him like that and expect me _not_ to get jealous?!"

"No-," I started. "But you _should_ know how I am right now. This was a stupid thing to do today. There's been too much going on that I can't deal with, and this doesn't help." Jason tried to interrupt, but I continued, "I'm not going to change my feelings for you just because of a stage kiss."

Jason relaxed with that response and gave me a small smile. "I know, Em. I'm sorry." He leaned forward to kiss me again. This time it was real and sweet.

It still made me cringe on the inside.

* * *

"God gave me courage to show you,

That you are not alone,"

I sang. I grabbed Ty's face and kissed him very quickly and broke away, avoiding his eyes.

"Oh come on, Emily! Make it look more real, more passionate than that!" Mrs. Radley called out.

 _If only she had seen_ _the one this morning_. I thought. I made the mistake of looking Ty straight in the eyes as we backed the blocking up. I was a goner. We worked our way back up and did it again, this time I allowed myself to kiss him like I had that morning. I got so lost in the kiss, more than the first one. I heard Mrs. Radley laugh and say, "Yes! That's what I mean. Keep it up!" I broke away for air, Ty looking at me in astonishment, and then we kissed again, Ty's arms grasping my shoulders, holding me in place. I heard someone say, "Well, Jason, she looks pretty into it. You sure she's into you and not Ty?" That snapped me out of it. I turned away from Ty and did something I never did. I broke character to answer the speaker, "Yes, he's sure." I snapped. But I wasn't sure. I felt confused. It was like half my heart said, _Yes, Jason is the guy for you. He's been there for you like no one else has,_ while the other half said, _Ty is who you really love. He can sing like no other. He gives life to some dark part of you. He is truly like the music of the night. And always there for you? Please, when has Jason ever really truly seen your heart? You're cautious around him even now, for fear of causing an argument. You've always been open with Ty, and him mostly with you._ I gave my head a little shake to force those thoughts away.

We continued on until we finished the play. We had a fifteen minute break. Jason and I utilized each and every second. He cornered me in the hallway, alone.

"So you're sure you love me and not Ty?" Jason asked me with a forced laugh, playing for a light tone. He couldn't hide the uncertainty in his voice, though.

"Positive." I think.

I know he sensed my confusion. "What's the matter with you?" Jason gently grabbed the sides of my face and made me look up at him. "I know you were talking about Ty this morning when you said those things about him being your Angel and being alluring. And there is no way you could have 'acted' the way you did when he kissed you. It was too real." He took a deep breath. "Em, I'm just confused. With everything. Tell me now. Do you really love me?"

I stared at Jason. "O-of course I do." I couldn't hold his gaze. "I don't know what's wrong with me." I turned away. "The week before last was just- and this morning- Jase," I struggled to keep my tears from falling. Couldn't cry in full makeup and costume. That could get messy. "I- I can't answer you right now. I'm not- not- fixed. From Nathan. I'm not okay. Let me- let me-," I buried my face in my hands. I inhaled and held it for a few seconds. I released it when I looked back up. "I will be okay. Eventually. But right now, there's too much going on, too much stress with the musical and you and Ty and I- I can't right now."

"Em, the way you look at him...," he sighed. "It just makes me wonder."

I decided the safest thing for me to do was to place my hands back against my forehead. "Ever since I heard him sing- I- I don't know. It's just-," I wrapped my arms around myself as I concentrated on taking in even breaths. It kept the tears from falling. It kept me from going numb.

"Even when you were kidnapped?" Jason asked, quietly.

"No." I shook my head and looked up at him. "Not then. But, I wasn't awake for most of that. I don't know what's wrong, okay? I feel like I'm wading through Jell-O or something when I hear him. And when I do hear him, I only hear him. Nothing else." I wasn't going to say that I didn't seem to mind it so much.

Jason looked at me and was quiet for a long moment. Then he murmured, "This is just too much like the actual musical. It's so real right now that it's- creepy." Jason's gaze sharpened. "You're not just messing with me, are you?"

I stared at him in disbelief. "No! I wouldn't do that to you. I do love you." The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them and I felt reassured of my feelings when I said them. Sort of. "I know I love you and that I want to be with you for the rest of my life." I think.

Jason gave an unsatisfied sort of smile. Just a turn of the corners of his mouth, really, and held me in a hug. "I just want to be sure, Em." I stood there, leaning against him, quiet.

Me too.

* * *

She thinks she's sure. She isn't. I saw her. The way she looks at me. She's so confused, so conflicted. But her soul. It knows. It calls to me as mine does to hers. The rose wouldn't be on her wrist, otherwise, the match to mine. And Jason, always trying to hold her, when he shouldn't even be touching her. The small shocks he got when he touched her left hand were courtesy of the healing that had taken place when Emily had been taken away. No. Let it go. The fact that I had even allowed her to be kidnapped by that idiot guy galled me to no end.

I see you Emily, struggling to find the words to say to Jason.

My darling Emily, my Christine, soon you will be mine. Soon you will realize how deep our love flows. It cannot be compared to him and his paltry emotions. He has no hope of ever understanding. Of ever knowing what it's like to love someone this much.

* * *

The Phantom held his hand out to me through the mirror. What choice did I have but to take it? His voice, oh his voice! It snared my heart and soul with only a single note. Anything he would ask of me I would do. He led me down a dim hall, my hand still in his. Through a labyrinth of halls and tunnels, we finally came to a ladder. He helped me up and we climbed for what seemed forever until we reached a cat walk running along the wall to a door on the opposite end. I took a step, testing the stability. A gentle nudge on my back helped me take another step and another until I reached the door. He reached around me and turned the doorknob. The door swung open and we walked in together. "Sing, my angel." He murmured. "Sing for me." I opened up my mouth and the notes began to float, unearthly and beautiful melodies I had never heard before, could never dream of creating, hanging in the still air.

I heard the door click closed and the deadbolt creak as it was turned. But I didn't care. As long as I could be with him, all was well. But I was curious. Who was the face behind the mask? Who was he, this mysterious and handsome Phantom? He walked up to me and took my hand. I reached up and caressed his cheek. Then I slid the mask off of his face. Surprisingly, he made no action to stop me or reprimand me. I stared at his face. He was Ty. And he was Jason. His features kept changing from one to the other. "Well, my love? Which of us do you choose?"

* * *

 **So, originally, this was two chapters, but neither of them were over 2500 words. Which is kind of short for two chapters. So they are together. And are now long enough. Yay! See you next week!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Thank you anonymous person for suggesting what you did. I needed to hear that. I appreciate it. I was feeling like I needed to start getting to what is going to happen next and sacrifice some of the ideas I have in my head, but I'm figuring out how to lengthen it as I go along. So thank you! And thank you asprankle1! :) Melstrife- I'll explain better in a later chapter. But I don't want to now for risk of spoiling stuff.**

 **Thanks y'all!**

* * *

 **Chapter 13**

I jerked up from my pillow. My heart was racing and sweat soaked my sheets. Choose? But I had. I had. I chose Jason. Hadn't I? I had to remind myself that it was just a dream and that it didn't mean anything. It didn't mean anything. _Don't make it mean anything._ _It was just a dream. Only a dream._ I thought. _Then why am I so unsure? Why is confusion the first thing that hits me? Why can't love be easy?_ I laid back and breathed slowly until my heart beat returned to normal. Jason or Ty- Ty or Jason. Why was I even thinking about this? Considering it? I already knew who I would choose, in my heart. Right? I rolled over and gazed at the clock. It had only been a few hours since I laid down. I rolled back and stared at the ceiling, wide awake. It was going to be a long night. A confusing, heart-wrenching, exhausting night.

I managed to doze some, but ended up dreaming it over and over again, so I gave up. I went down stairs and paced, getting more and more exhausted, but too worked up to try and sleep again.

The following day went by in a blur. I was so tired. My head ached from lack of sleep and the mental stress being put on it. I had managed to stay awake through all of my classes so far, but I wasn't hopeful for my trig class later on. I was on my way to the theater from AP World History, barely making small talk with Abby, hoping to appear human and not the zombie I felt like, when I brushed up against a girls' arm on accident. The world seemed to slow down but then I wondered why the floor was suddenly at the level of my face and why it seemed to happen so often, when I was welcomed back into that familiar darkness that knew me so well.

 _I yawned, so definitely_ not _wanting to go to the theater rehearsal tonight. I would rather have taken a nap and ordered some take out instead._ Oh, well _, I mused,_ at least that hottie Ty will be there _. But he seemed to have his sights on Emily. Anybody would have noticed that by the way he looked at her. Plus, now she was available, so I couldn't see anything with me happening there._

 _But getting to see him was a definite plus to my sure to be boring night. I jumped when my phone vibrated, snapping me out of my reverie. I looked at the screen, half praying that rehearsal was canceled, to see that someone was calling me from a private number._

 _"_ _Hello?" I answered._

 _"_ _Maia." The voice was unfamiliar, cold._

 _"_ _Who is this?"_

 _"_ _A friend."_

 _"_ _Oh, yeah? Then, "friend", what do you want?"_

 _"_ _A favor."_

 _I laughed at that. "And why would I do anything for you? I don't even know you. 'Friend.'"_

 _"_ _You will do it because otherwise, the next time you find yourself alone in the hallway at your school, you might remain that way, or, you could find yourself in the company of someone you do not want to meet. Because if you saw their face, you would have only one thing left to do in life."_

 _"_ _What?" I whispered. Was this really happening?_

 _"_ _That is, to leave it." I went cold with fear. Did this person really just threaten to kill me? Was I even awake? I gave myself a hard pinch on the arm. Yep. Definitely awake._

 _"_ _But, if you do as I say, you could find that you wake up one morning without asthma. I'm not an unfair person. I give as I take."_

 _Who was this? Could he really cure my asthma? Did I want him to? He_ had _just threatened to kill me otherwise. This was entirely too strange._

 _"_ _Don't keep me waiting, Maia. I'll have your answer now. Not later."_

 _"_ _Alright." I said quietly. "What do you want me to do?"_

 _"_ _Find a moment when Emily's boyfriend is away from her and kiss him where she will be able to see."_

 _"_ _What?" There was silence on the other end. All that for some relationship jostling? But in order for me to cause issues, they'd have to be together… Oh, gosh. This guy was creeping on Emily. My thoughts whizzed around, not making any sense. I decided to just try and ask. Maybe he'd humor me. "Why? They're together again? Who are-?" A thought struck me, "You're not Ty are you? Cause, man, I know you like her, but this is not the way-," the voice cut me off._

 _"_ _No need to be worried, I'm not him, although I know of whom you speak." A quiet laugh came from the other side of the phone. "No, he will not interfere with my plan unless he gets in the way of me and my prize. Then I just might have to get rid of him, and he is_ such _good company so I really don't want to do that. Now be sure to do as I say or you might just disappear. Don't even think about going to the police. I will know if you do. Goodbye."_

 _With a final bone chilling laugh, the phone went dead and I threw it from me. I crouched down, fear sending shudders racking through my body. I put my head in between my knees, hands over my head, struggling to breathe. Now I_ really _didn't want to go to rehearsal. But now I had absolutely no choice. Not if I wanted to continue to have a beating heart and working lungs. I pressed a hand to my chest, feeling my heart beat. Someone had just threatened to_ kill _me._ To kill me _. A pit formed in my stomach. I was going to be sick._

 _I shuffled around my room, gathering the items I would need for rehearsal. I shoved them all into my backpack and started the too short trudge to the theater. Each step reminded me of the conversation and how close I was to having to comply. The closer I got, the sicker I felt. When I got there I quietly checked in with Mrs. Radley and sat down to wait for a few minutes for everyone to arrive. We began the rehearsal. When I had to sing on stage, I barely moved my mouth, so scared was I that I might throw up all over everyone. When we took a short break, Emily actually came up to me and asked me if I was ok. I almost laughed and said far from it. I almost told her everything. She was always so nice. And she had already been through a lot, what with Jason breaking up with her and the old phantom quitting. She was probably super stressed. But I guessed that since she and Jason were back together, I was about to make it a whole lot worse. Which sucked._

 _Why had he picked me?_

 _I almost asked her for help. But I said I was fine. I apologized to her in my mind over and over again. When her boyfriend, Jason, walked off stage, I made my way over to him. I glanced back in Emily's direction. She was talking to Ty, her attention totally focused on him, him leaning towards her. They were so into each other. Was that guy sure Jason and Emily were back together? 'Cause it looked like things were getting on with mister new hot guy. If the situation hadn't been so sickening in context, I would have laughed at my strange levity._

 _With my heart pounding, I continued on to Jason. I said his name and he looked over at me. I quickly stepped over to him, tripped on the wrinkle in the carpet that_ always _caught my foot, fell into him and seized the opportunity. My lips were pressed against his. I felt him take in a quick breath in surprise. He did nothing. I kept my lips firmly planted on his until I heard a theater door slam shut and Jason finally had the sense to push me away. I scanned the room for Emily and noted with relief that she was nowhere in sight. Maybe I had just done something to hurt her, but I had done my job and maybe I'd get paid for it._

 _The guilt crashed down, heavy and sour. I hadn't wanted to. But now it was done, and now that creep of a human could have nothing to say to me. Nothing to_ do _to me. I had followed his instructions. An especially loud whisper broke me out of my thoughts. People were focused on the stage. No one was looking at me. I couldn't believe it. No one had seen. Except for Emily. Jason was still standing there staring at me looking like an idiot with his mouth hanging open. I walked away, headed for the green room bathroom to go throw up, trying to steady my hands without anyone seeing how badly they were shaking._

 _After I finished puking, I went to go grab my inhaler. I was half way to my bag when I realized I didn't need it. That did it. I ran back into the bathroom and started sobbing. It was too much. Why was this happening? I was definitely grateful that I could breathe more deeply than ever before, but I wasn't sure the price had been worth it. "Well done." I froze. Oh god. He was here. There was no mistaking that cold inhuman voice that whispered. I barely had the wherewithal to look over my shoulder, terrified that I was going to see someone behind me. I stayed frozen like that for a solid ten minutes until someone came looking for me. Mrs. Radley was throwing a fit because I wasn't on stage. This day just kept getting better. I walked out to her and plead sickness. She must have seen something in my face that concerned her because she sent me home. I made it out of the theater and sprinted back to my dorm. I collapsed in my room after locking the door, breathing heavily, not wheezing. I laughed at my new athleticism. But the guilt was still there. I tried to rationalize what I had done. It wasn't that bad. It's not like it will send her into depression or anything. She'll be fine._ I don't have asthma anymore!

 _He threatened to kill me. It's not like I had a choice. And I mean, it probably won't even cause any lasting trauma in their relationship. If Jason has any sense he'll just explain what happened. I stumbled over to my bed and crashed. I was finally getting that nap I had wanted earlier. Too bad it felt like it had cost me my integrity._

My eyes flew open. I analyzed what I had seen in the sharp clarity that followed my blackout. I didn't like what this memory implied. I didn't like it at all. A few moments passed and I returned to being mostly myself. A part of me was relieved that I knew why Maia had kissed Jason and that now I knew who had manipulated her into it, but mostly I was disturbed that anyone would force her into doing that. I felt bad for her. That seemed even a little harsh for Nathan. No, he wasn't entirely stable, but, Nathan never gave me that unbelievably cold vibe. He also couldn't heal anyone. Not like that. If I was any judge of how well he took care of people. I traced the rose on my wrist, absentmindedly.

Unless it hadn't been Nathan. I pushed that thought away, refusing to justify it with things I had _lived._ I was not even going to consider it. I just wanted the whole ordeal to be over with. _And it is,_ I reminded myself. I pushed myself off the floor and realized that there were people around me asking if I was ok. It took me a moment to actually understand what they were saying, but I nodded and said _I must have tripped. I'm fine_. Everyone drifted away. I wasn't sure how I managed to keep getting away with these excuses that were so obviously lies.

As I stood to finish the trek to my acting class, I saw Abby watching me with a disbelieving expression on her face. She knew there was more going on than I was telling her. I quickened my pace, not willing to talk about what my fears were. She deserved to know, but so much had happened and I hadn't had a chance to really catch up with her. I couldn't burden her with this. We had drifted so far from each other. I mused over the year as I walked. I had though this semester would turn out so differently than it had. I thought my school putting on my favorite musical would mean good things, not all this stress and heartbreak and mind-wrenching confusion. And that last blackout, why did it make me think that Nathan had just been a coincidence? Wait, the memory I had seen when he took me- of the phone.

"Rough night, Emily?" Mrs. Radley asked. "You look tired."

I was torn out of my thoughts by her question. When had I gotten here? How had I gotten here so quickly? I looked at her, "Um. Yeah. I'm fine." This exhaustion was taking a bigger toll on me than I thought. I trudged past her and sat near the back of the room. The rest of the students filtered in and Mrs. Radley began to talk. I stared at the front of the room, trying to pay attention. But I was distracted by my realization from earlier. I hadn't listened to the conversation he had with Jason on that burner phone. There wasn't anything to do with the roses, either. But he had said it was him, hadn't he? I realized I was tracing the rose on my wrist. Looking at it, it made me realize he hadn't. He had just said, "Of course it's me." I wasn't sure if it was my lack of sleep or paranoia connecting all these thoughts, but connected they were.

After class was over, (we had watched a film about different acting techniques that was so dull I could barely keep my eyes open even now when it was full bright light in the hall. I was so stressed though, I hadn't been able to quiet my mind enough to actually fall asleep.) I galloped down the stairs and practically ran to the theater. I saw Jason leaning against the wall outside of it so I grabbed him and shoved him backwards into the theater. I threw my arms around him and trembled, fighting to keep control over the flood of emotions that threatened to take over. "What's wrong, baby?" He couldn't hide the alarm in his voice. I didn't even have to look up to see his worried expression. I let myself be held for a few more moment. Then I spoke.

"What if it wasn't Nathan?" I whispered to his shirt. Jason lifted my head from his chest and looked me in the eyes. "Of course it was. You saw him when he kidnapped you, didn't you?"

"No, that's not what I mean. I mean yes, I did see him but I'm talking about what if he was just some love starved guy who coincidentally had an obsession with me, but wasn't the actual stalker?" I whispered. Jason's face was a white blank. "No. Let's not even consider that. It couldn't have been anyone else. I'm sure."

I nodded. "Just wanted to tell you. It's been worrying me." Jason kissed my forehead. "Babe, you can always- always tell me anything. Don't let this stress you out. I'll protect you. Don't worry." I didn't even notice his choice of nicknames as Jason tightened his arms around me and whispered that he needed to talk to a couple of teachers and grab lunch before class started. "I have to go, baby. I'm sorry." I nodded against his chest and then let him go and sat down in a seat. Alone. So many things were running through my mind. So many. But I was willing to believe what Jason said, and that took a mountain of worry off me. I blinked, considering everything before my thoughts began to dwindle away into nothings and then I nodded off still sitting up, my exhaustion and blackout finally catching up to me.

* * *

I was woken by Ty gently shaking my shoulder. "Em? You awake?" I blearily sat up and looked at him. I had been moved to the ground at some point, and covered by a blanket with a jacket under my head as a pillow. I considered carefully and then replied with, "No." Ty laughed gently at that. There was something in his gaze that made my heart ache. He crouched down and softly traced the circles under my eyes with the tip of his finger. I stayed absolutely still, suddenly very awake. "You look tired, sweetheart."

"That's not the half of it." I managed to reply, cheeks tingling warmly under his fingers.

"You can sleep for a bit longer if you want." Ty whispered. My eyes were still heavy, but I asked, "Longer? How long have I- Ty, what time is it?"

"There's still three hours until rehearsal. You can-,"

"What? But rehearsal starts at six today. I slept through the rest of my classes? How?" I stared at him, not comprehending until he explained.

"Mrs. Radley said all we had to do today during class was touch up some stuff on the set and not to bother you because we needed you well and rested for the performances. She called the front office and told them and they were willing to excuse you from your last class of the day because of your recent, ah, mishap. She asked me to look after you, which is why I know and also is why I am here."

"It was like two weeks ago, right?" I rubbed my eyes, none of this making much sense to my still fried brain.

"Just go back to sleep. You look like you should still be, I don't know, at home in bed resting." I not too reluctantly lay back down on the ground, shrugged the blanket back over my shoulder and closed my eyes. Ty stroked my hair and started humming something soft and lovely. "Where'd this stuff come from, by the way?" I managed to mutter between yawns. The jacket smelled familiar. Warm and soothing. "They're both mine. You looked like you could use them, love."

"I had a weird dream last night. Kept me up. Kept dreaming it over and over." I mumbled. "Had to choose-," sleep hit me like a rock and I was out.

"Which of us do you choose, my love?"

I was too deeply asleep to answer, but the Angel continued his humming.

* * *

 **This next chapter has me stumped. I know where I want to go and what I want to happen, but it is so very very short and I need to lengthen it or add something different to the next chapter than what I have. -I just thought of something.- Bye! Update soon!**


	14. Chapter 14

**I'm just going to reiterate what I said at the very beginning. I don't own Phantom of the Opera or any of the lyrics. (I'm saying this because I use a ton of the lyrics in this and the following chapters.) :)**

* * *

 **Chapter 14**

I yawned. Jason had come in fifteen minutes before rehearsal started and shook me awake. I'd had barely enough time to slap on some makeup and jump into costume before we were on stage for warm-ups. My hair had then been done in record time and was now dripping down my back in tight curls. We had run through a few problem scenes, and then we took a break for dinner. I was the only one in the theater because everyone else was in the lobby eating. I had eaten quickly, my excitement taking the place of my appetite and erasing any leftover fatigue that hadn't been eliminated by my long nap. I stretched, but carefully, because of my costume. I was wearing the slave girl outfit and it was sort of tight in all the wrong places, even with the few pounds I had shed.

This was the first of the final two dress rehearsals and it was going fantastically, considering. Everyone had their lines down now and the blocking was just under perfection. Fixing those few scenes earlier had cleared up everything, I smiled to myself, thinking about how amazing this musical was going to be. I got up and walked onto the stage and into the back hallway. It was a nice place to think. I had just let the door close when I turned and saw Ty standing against a wall. "Oh! Gosh Ty, you scared me! What are you doing back here?" I asked, laughing lightly to try and hide my racing nerves. He smirked. "That always happens a lot with us. But, I was waiting for you. I know you come back here sometimes and I wanted to know if you wanted to practice a few songs together. Plus the acoustics here are pretty sweet."

"Sure!" I answered him. Anything to hear him sing again. But that was bad. His singing did something to me that made my head spin. I shouldn't be here, alone with him. I couldn't trust myself.

Ty suggested a song before I could make up an excuse to leave. "Point of No Return?"

I nodded. He began and I was pinned in place by the first few notes.

"You have come here

In pursuit of your deepest urge,

In pursuit of that wish which till now has been silent,

Silent."

Why did this feel like he was actually confronting me about the feelings that had been kept mostly unverbalized between us?

"I have brought you

That our passions may fuse and merge.

In your mind you've already succumbed to me,

Dropped all defenses, completely succumbed to me

Now you are here with me, no second thoughts.

You've decided. Decided."

The funny thing was, though, that he was almost right. My confused thoughts flew around my head, battering against my weakened resolve. What I told myself was the truth, was nothing more than a tenuous lie.

"Past the point of no return,

No backward glances.

The games we've played till now are at an end."

He took a step toward me. "Past all thought of if or when.

No use resisting.

Abandon thought and let the dream descend-,"

I had closed my eyes, allowing my frenzied thoughts to drift away. The fight was gone. When I opened them again, he was only a couple of feet away from me. "Sing." He whispered.

"You have brought me

To that moment when words run dry.

To that moment when speech disappears into silence.

Silence.

I have come here

Hardly knowing the reason why.

In my mine I've already imagined-,"

I kept singing, my face hot from the truth that was coming from my mouth. Ty had closed his eyes and had a smile on his face, as if there was nothing he loved more than listening to me sing. And then we sang together. "The bridge is crossed, so stand and watch it burn.

We've passed the point of no return."

Our faces were inches from each other. Then he changed the song abruptly. "Come to your Angel of Music. I am your Angel of Music." In front of me I no longer saw Ty, but an Angel of the night, powerful and hypnotizing, but most of all, beautiful. I felt words falling out of my mouth to hang on the air, echoing in the hall. We created a melody that started to grow softer and softer as my Angel closed the distance between us. He traced the rose on my wrist. He brought it to his lips and gently pressed a kiss to it. I shivered. He was humming now. My Angel called to the very depths of my soul and heart. Wherever he led me, I would follow. And then, all of a sudden, our lips were together and all I knew was that this was right, this was good, and my heart felt like it would leap out of my chest, it was beating so fast. My head was spinning and my lips were on fire. There was no one else in my world except me and my Angel. I was so close to him, pulling him to me, desperate for his touch. He had me against the wall, his hands buried in my hair. He broke away only as long as it took to say, "You are mine. Not Jason's. Mine." His eyes burned into mine, flashing with a deep inner light. I was his _._

 _Jason?_ I thought. _Didn't I love him, too? Did I love him more? Did I love him at all? No. The Angel of Music holds my heart. He loves me. But I thought I loved Jason. No. I thought- I thought- no._ All thoughts fled from me as our lips touched again, my arms finding their way around his neck. Then he was hugging me, his head against my shoulder. "I love you." He whispered. Joy. My heart lifted and I started to whisper back to him, "I love-," but he place a soft kiss against my neck and I gasped, my brain not working. He let me go and glanced at the door next to us. "We have to go back. Radley's calling for everyone." My breathing was uneven and my knees were weak. "Um. Okay." I managed. As the door shut behind him, I leaned back against the wall and brought my fingers to my lips. They were still tingling.

"Did that just happen?" I wondered aloud. I couldn't keep the small grin from my face as I floated through the door to join everyone. I made a quick stop in the bathroom to check my makeup. I had to touch up quickly and then ran out on stage. "There you are! Places for the top of Act 1!" Mrs. Radley shouted from near the middle of the house. "Thank you, places." I called. I slid behind the curtain and saw Jason standing with his back to me, whispering with a couple of guys in the dim light. One of them gestured to me and Jason whirled around, a smile lighting up his features. _Jason…_ I turned from him and went to go join the line of other girls ready to dance out on stage. Jason loves me. I love. Who? Why was this so hard? Even after-? I had made up my mind. Then I saw him and other feelings came back and were real and I couldn't wrap my mind around it. Ty was there, though. I thought I saw him. Behind Jason. Not just in my mind, as he was always there, but physically standing behind Jason, watching me. Then he was gone and it made me wonder if something was happening that I couldn't quite understand. My right hand found its way around my other wrist, my thumb rubbing over the rose. I turned back and saw the confused look on Jason's face. He walked over to me and simply gazed at me. He leaned over and tried to kiss me but suddenly, I was very uncomfortable. I didn't want this. I turned my head just slightly at the last second so that he kissed just away from my lips. "Em, what?" The hurt returned to his eyes. "C-can't mess up my makeup." I tried to patch up the mess I was creating, but he knew something was wrong. "Whatever, Em." He left me standing there watching as he went back to where he was before, with his back to me. I was messing everything up. I couldn't keep doing this. I was going to end up hurting one or the other. _Jason. You love him. No. You love the Angel._ "I can't." I whispered. Jason was looking at me now. I tried to signal with my eyes that I was struggling through so much more than mixed feelings. Something was strange with my mind, with my thoughts. Ty was back again. His voice kept filling up my head, leading my thoughts away from those of Jason and confusion. Then he was really there in front of me. He had his mask on and for the life of me I couldn't tell what was real for an incredibly long moment.

He's here. My Angel is here. After so long, he's finally here. I looked up at him, calm radiating from him as he took my hand and brought it to his lips. "Miss Daaé. Break a leg." What an odd turn of phrase, I thought.

Another hand took mine from the Angel's and a sharp shock jolted me out of my weird hallucination. I turned. Jason was glaring at the Angel- no, Ty- and was whispering furiously. "I don't know what you're doing, but stay away from my girlfriend. She doesn't need this right now." I stood there, in a daze, as Ty answered, "I was only saying 'good luck'. Relax, dude." I jerked my hand away from Jason as another shock hit us both. I hissed in pain and rubbed my wrist. "Why does that keep happening?" I wondered aloud. "That's what I'd like to know." Ty started to say something, but Jason cut him off, "Shut up." He then turned to me, effectively cutting Ty out of the conversation. "Babe, are you okay? You aren't acting like yourself." I blinked up at him as I thought. "Yeah. I'm fine. I think."

"No. You're not." He bent down a little in concern. "That's like the fifth time you've let me call you 'babe' today. Usually you fight me about it if I even get anywhere close to a word similar to it. Emily, what's going on with you?"

"We were singing…" I stared off into the darkness behind him where Ty had disappeared. "And then-," the overture started playing, silencing what I had been about to say. Jason stared hard at me and then bent down and kissed me. It was like a fog cleared. "Jason." I whispered. I grabbed his hand and squeezed. "Something's wrong. When he sings-," Ty had come up behind Jason and looked at me with those _eyes_ that seemed to glow. Then he was gone, on stage. Jason hugged me as I stood there, looking off on stage after Ty. He let me go when the first scene started and I felt that feeling again. I was alone. Surrounded by everyone, but alone. I saw Ty out of the corner of my eye, watching me from off stage. He was with me. And I loved him for it. No! I couldn't. I had to love Jason. Right? After everything- after- after nothing. This was a hopeless battle, one that I seemed determined to continue no matter that I already knew what the outcome would be.

This mental war continued for the rest of rehearsal. Every time Ty would sing that strange thing would happen to me and I was no longer myself. I couldn't understand, could barely fight it enough to maintain that this was a rehearsal at my school on a stage. It didn't help that there were a few times where I was alone with the Angel backstage and during those times, there were few inches between us. He stole kisses that in turn stole my breath and I was always on the verge of letting go, but then Raoul- Jason- would come from on stage and Ty would vanish. Jason was like an anchor, holding me down, keeping me sane from this strange spell that Ty seemed to cast over me. A spell that I wasn't sure I wanted to be broken.

* * *

I was complimented many times by my fellow actors. They said that I looked like I actually was Christine, they couldn't see me on stage, just her, and that my acting looked very realistic. I said thank you but they were words that felt rehearsed coming out of my mouth because in my head I didn't hear any of it. It continued on until I finally convinced myself that I loved Jason. The Angel still had his hold on me, though, because I still wasn't sure. _The Angel. He's everything you want, everything your soul needs. And he's already mine._ I blinked _. No. He isn't mine._ I had to remind myself. _And why do I keep thinking Angel?_ I forced myself to think his name. _He isn't-_ Ty _isn't an angel. He just sings really well. He sounds like one._ A voice in the very back of my mind whispered, _Oh, but he is one. You will surrender to him. You have no choice. You don't want a choice. You need him. As he needs you._ As I traced my rose, I shrugged the voice aside and repeated to myself that I loved Jason. _I do. I do. I do._ But the voice whispered softly, _You know you don't._


	15. Chapter 15

**Again, this chapter was two but I combined it. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 15**

Friday… Saturday… Sunday… they all went by slowly and each rehearsal brought on a new wave of mental warfare between my soul and reality. Monday arrived and I was barely holding it all together. My teachers were cutting me a lot of slack. I sensed an overall atmosphere of pity from each of them, but that might just have been because of the dark circles that shadowed my eyes. They probably thought I was still working through the whole thing that had happened with Nathan. That isn't to say I hadn't been, but my mind was so scattered I was extremely surprised that I was having no trouble remembering lines and music. Abby had practically vanished off the face of the earth, both of our schedules clashing and making it impossible for us to meet up and hang out. With the combined stress of the musical, my not so stable mind, and schoolwork, I was flipping out. I barely waded through the school day, slogging through the work my teachers threw at us. I didn't see much of either Ty or Jason; didn't make much effort to try and seek either of them out. At least during the day, I was somewhat normal, somewhat in control of my own mind. As soon as night fell, however, it all seemed to change.

I had my makeup and hair done, having arrived two hours before my call time to make sure it was done perfectly. My costume was on and the voluminous skirt I would have to wear later was hanging just out of sight of the audience, ready to be carried onstage for me. I was rocking on my heels, bouncing up and down onto my toes. Pointe shoes were very entertaining when you didn't really know how to dance in them. It was quiet in my little corner of the darkness, but the rest of backstage was chaos. It smelled of hairspray and sweat. There was a spark of energy that pervaded the air, hinting at everyone's excitement. I breathed deeply, the smell of the costumes and energy somehow calming and bracing. This is where I was, and that wouldn't change. I was _here_.

My heart, however, was still being pulled in two different directions. Ty and Jason. I was afraid that Ty had a stronger hold, or claim, but I didn't know how, seeing as I had known Jason for a longer time. There just seemed to be something about Ty that called to me on a deeper level than anything Jason and I had- have. I just felt… that was just it. I didn't know how I felt. I couldn't make sense of much other than how alone I felt.

One minute until show time and I was strangely at ease. I had expected to be nervous and not this calm, this ready. The group of girls around me whispered excitedly as we heard the orchestra start to play. The curtains opened and the music began. Then the girl who played Carlotta sang and we danced and then we went through the whole spiel where Carlotta gets mad at the new managers. The backdrop 'fell' on Carlotta and I was told to sing so I did. I felt his eyes on me. He was always watching me, every chance he got. Maybe, singing for _him_ during this song wouldn't hurt anything. Just as a step to get into character.

The audience was in raptures with my song, _Think of Me_ and I practically sang my soul out. When I glanced over to the wings again, he was gone. Then the dressing room scene came along. Jason actually seemed to be asking if I would go with him to dinner. It was as if he was telling me to make my choice right there. I had to choose him or Ty. I told him that I couldn't. I couldn't leave! But I tried to make him see that I chose him, Jason, over anyone else. Didn't I? I tried to make it known by how I looked at him. He couldn't see it. He wasn't getting it. It didn't really matter though, because I didn't feel it. My heart was breaking and it was because I couldn't choose whom I wanted to love. The Angel was winning. Raoul spoke his lines, "Two minutes, Little Lottie!" And left the stage. I heard how he actually meant to take me away from this mind bending stage and away from the Phantom. I could have gone. All of this would be done with. I stared at the picture of my father for a second. I missed him. I wished he could be here, watching me reach heights he'd never dreamed the Angel would take me. He'd understand everything, but he was gone. I had to pause and try to pinpoint when, exactly, my thoughts had changed from my actual father to the one who didn't exist outside the realm of this show.

I almost laughed as I realized, or thought I realized, that I was going crazy. This musical, my Angel, it was all making me go insane. Those musings were cut short and thrust away as the Angel's- no the Phantom's voice crept up on me. The Phantom seemed to taunt Raoul as his voice overcame my willingness to try and continue to separate reality from what was on stage. I was drawn to the Phantom's voice as he sang to me and I reached for his proffered hand through the mirror. I hesitated as Raoul flitted across my mind for a second and then vanished. I placed my hand in my Angel's and he led me off stage. I felt a brush of lips against my cheek as the Phantom led me off towards the back of the stage so we could get in the boat that was waiting for us. I glanced back and to my surprise, I saw Raoul. That broke some of the hold Ty had on my mind. I mouthed the words, I love you, to Jason and hoped he saw me. He did and smiled back at me, staring at me with a yearning I didn't fully understand. If only I had meant those words. I tried to, but, try as I might, they held no power. He disappeared from my vision as Ty pulled me into the boat with him. The backdrop folded away from us as we rolled forward on the track the boat was placed on. We sang together and it literally felt as if he was pushing my voice higher and higher until I satisfied his need for music, for beauty. I finished with the high note at the end, it piercing the air that still thrummed from the music being played. Ty was regaining his control over me. I couldn't resist his voice. It was too entrancing. I knew the battle was over when he started to sing _The Music of the Night_. The Phantom had won. I gave in. Or I almost did. I remembered seeing Raoul and feeling his lips against my cheek. The struggle wasn't over, it was simply beginning again. The musical, I managed to keep hold of that bit of reality, went on. I was brought back to reality continually backstage or in the wings when Raoul- Jason- and I were together for just seconds. In those seconds he would sneak in a kiss or he would squeeze my hand. But no words were spoken because our mics were continually left on. It was barely enough and its effectiveness was quickly fading with my will to try and resist for something that was not true, not anymore.

* * *

The audience was the best this theater had ever seen. The applause was strong and no words were spoken between one audience member and another. They were captivated and it was as if they were in on the battle that Christine was going through. Their eyes were glued to the stage. Every time one of the leads walked on stage, particularly the Phantom and Christine, and began singing, emotions welled up within every audience member. They heard the songs as they never had before. Never had they heard such feeling from some high-schoolers. Each note called up some feeling or memory that had lain long forgotten. Little did they know that the emotions were real and the 'acting' that was going on was reality. The rivalry between the Phantom and Raoul was truly happening in real life. Christine was actually fighting to keep her soul and mind her own. No one would have guessed that the tension and the struggle between the characters appearing on the stage was real.

* * *

I ran out into the night. It should have felt cold, but I wasn't. The moon was bright and I could feel its light on my skin. I felt sick. He had killed again. My former Angel turned Phantom had gone too far. Roul had followed me up here. I thanked God that he trusted me that much to understand that I needed him here. "Why have you brought me here?" He asked angrily.

"Don't take me back there!" I pleaded.

"We must return!"

I spun around to face him. "He'll kill me! His eyes will find me there!" I couldn't even begin to convey to him the obsession the Phantom had with me, and my love and overwhelming fear I had for him.

"Please, don't say that."

"Those eyes that burn-,"

"Don't even think it!"

"-and if he has to kill a thousand men-,"

"Forget this waking nightmare!" he sang at me.

"The Phantom of the opera-,"

"Is a fable, believe me!" the frustration in his voice stung me.

"will kill and kill again!"

"There is no Phantom of the Opera!" He stared at me, his eyes so commanding. But nothing like those that I had seen far under the opera house.

We continued like that for a long whirlwind of a moment, me trying to convince him what I had experienced was real, not only in my mind. I wasn't mad. At least, I didn't think so. But Raoul made me doubt everything until I doubted the roof I stood on. I stared out into the night, not truly seeing anything I gazed upon. "Christine!" I couldn't hear him. "Christine." His hands were lifting my head up to look at him. I started to feel a trickle of hope return. He was here, I was safe. Jason had me-, "Christine." I jerked away. It hadn't been Raoul that sang my name so softly, longingly.

"What was that?" I cried. Raoul turned away from me, worry on his face and he began to examine the darker places on the roof of the Opera Populaire that we currently took refuge on. He left me. Alone again. Lost, I looked around, searching for my Angel. Why must he torment me so? I found myself along the edge of the roof. I peered over. I could end it all. No more voices, no more pain and confusion. No more darkness feeling as if it were slowly overcoming my soul. I looked up toward the moon and relaxed. I spread my arms out at my side and took a deep breath in. It would be over. "Christine!" Raoul yelled. My eyes flew open and I immediately snapped out of whatever I had been in. I looked down and almost fell backwards away from the edge. Raoul had me in his arms, held so tightly to stop the trembling, from me or from him I couldn't tell.

He swore to love me forever, through everything. We kissed and my heart thumped. I felt… safe. But that was it. I knew then that I didn't love him, not truly. Not like-. But he was leading me away, inside. Then I heard. I heard my Angel.

"Christine."

* * *

The opera was over. It had gone by in a blur. I was running out for bows and then- a flash- an explosion- screams of horror. The chandelier was falling. And I was directly in its path. I stood there, watching it fall and heard my Phantom scream, "No!" A hand grabbed me and jerked me out of the way. "Emily! What are you doing?" I turned my head to thank whoever had saved me, but suddenly, I didn't recognize what was happening. Was that… applause? Raoul was standing next to me, giving me a strange look. "Emily, are you okay? You just stood there looking terrified. It wasn't going to hit you, you know that." I stared at him. "Emily?" I ventured. "Raoul- why are you calling me that?" He gave me an exasperated look. "Ha-ha very funny. Better go get some water if you want it. Places in five." I watched him go, so utterly confused.

Then, he was there. Guiding me away. "You did very well, my love." So he wasn't angry with me. "I don't- I don't understand what's happening. Where am I? Where are we going?" I asked quietly. If anyone could explain to me what was going on, it would be him. "Nothing. You'll be fine. Emily." I blinked. "Ty." I stood where I was, staring at the ground at a loss for words. "You need to go put on your other costume, Em."

"Right." A few more seconds and I was nearly myself. The rest of the performance went about as well. In my mind, I mean. The audience loved it. Every time I would find myself almost overwhelmed, Ty would call me back. I loved him for it. After the audience had left, everyone was changing into street clothes and complementing each other on a show well done. I joined in, accepting compliments as they came and giving out others to everyone I saw. It helped keep my mind off of what was happening to me. I walked along in a daze to the back hallway. Jason caught me at the door, "Em, you okay?" I nodded silently and tried to lift my mouth in a smile. "Alright. I'm headed out. See you tomorrow." He kissed me on the cheek as he turned to go. "Oh, and, by the way." I turned to him. "Brava." I flashed a weak smile at his back. "You, too." I whispered. Alone. He always left me alone.

I turned the handle and walked into the dim hallway. I needed to try and understand everything that had happened tonight. Most of the lights were turned off already. I made my way to the darkest corner I could find and sank into it. I had been her. Christine. I had seen everything as though I was her and after having wobbled on the edge of it for so long, my mind couldn't take it. Head in hands, I cried. I was going crazy, I was mad, I was- I was-, "Emily." My head shot up at Ty's voice. I couldn't see him. But he was there. I could feel his arms around me, feel his warmth. "I'm sorry. It's okay. It'll be okay." He murmured against my hair. He held me until my tears stopped flowing and just rocked me back and forth. He was _with_ me. After a while, he started singing. It was more of a chant really and I became so tired listening to him. My eyes started to drift shut when he said, "Let me drive you home, okay?"

"Alright." I murmured. He helped me up, the delirium from tonight fading away.

* * *

If it worked correctly, she shouldn't remember. The panic, the hysteria, all gone. She'll just know that everything went perfectly for opening night. She'll remember performing, but none of the _slip._ None of the _Christine_. Seeing her like that, almost broken, cut me deep. _It was worth it._ The other half of me whispered. _She's so close._

The side effects of my voice were more effective on her with the rose and her true feelings that she was coming to terms with. She finally sees. _After everything. After so long._ I tried to push Him away, but the familiar cold was settling in. I could last until she was safely home.

I drove her, and listening to her breathe was a sweet music unlike anything else. I gently shook her shoulder to wake her. "Em? You're home." She sat up and looked at me with those big brown eyes. I would have fallen over had I not been sitting from the gaze she threw my way. It drove the coldness away. She smiled and I could hear the air shifting in a new melody that perfectly represented how I was feeling in that moment. "Thanks, Ty. You did great tonight." She got out of the car and I followed her. "You were so amazing," she continued. "For a little while, it felt like I actually was Christine." She laughed, a sound that created a new song through the air. "It sounds weird, but- yeah." I walked her to her door, content to bask in the songs she inspired by simply moving. I started to hum what I heard and she leaned her forehead against the door. I looked at her, worried. "Ty." She whispered. "When you do that, I-," she turned and looked at me, her eyes wide with conflicting emotions, pleading for something to show her the way to- to the truth. I reached out and brushed a strand of hair away from her face. And then I tried to show her once more.

We kissed for far too long, and when she finally broke away, my knees were as unsteady as my mind in that moment. "I- I need to go in." She stammered. She was so beautiful. Her blonde hair tumbling over her shoulders in messy waves. I reached out and ran it through my fingers. "Goodnight, my Christine." She shivered. She unlocked the door of the old house and stepped inside. She turned to me, her gaze heavy. "Goodnight, my Angel." She whispered back to me.

* * *

 **Oh! And thank you all for the wonderful comments!:)**


	16. Chapter 16

**Again, two chapters combined into one. This might be the longest chapter yet. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 16**

The rest of the performances went much the same as the first. Each night, Emily struggled to retain her grasp on reality, and each night, she slipped a little further into Christine, into Ty's voice. Jason understood that something was going on, something that was causing the girl he loved to change into someone quiet and withdrawn and dreamy-eyed, so unlike the bright and energetic personality he had known since he was a child.

He couldn't wait for the musical to be over with. Each day, he tried to keep her in the present, he tried to keep his hold on her, but she was falling away. He was losing her. He was losing her to someone he thought he knew. Someone he had known from a young age before he had moved away. He thought it strange that Emily had forgotten him. They had all played together until the day Ty and his family left. There was something strange going on with them. She had never been drawn to him like she was now. But Ty had always loved her. Jason knew. But now, this was years later. So much had changed. She was supposed to love him, Jason. It seemed the tide of change was upon them all once again.

He couldn't lose her. But he knew he was. She was drifting farther and farther away with each performance.

He watched her on stage that final night, and he knew that now was the right time. Perhaps the only time to see if what he had planned would work. When he kissed her during their last performance of _All I Ask of You,_ Jason was terrified by the glazed look in her eyes. She was so far away, in another time. When he led her off stage, he shook her gently, "Emily! Wake up!" she blinked and her eyes sharpened. "Jason." He smiled at her, relieved. "Stay with me. We are almost through this." She nodded, a strained smile lifting the corners of her mouth. She quickly had her wig changed for the final seconds of the first act. She ran out and bowed, then _acted_ terrified by the chandelier. _Maybe things will finally turn out right_ , Jason thought, fingering the small box in his jacket pocket. Mrs. Radley had given her approval for the timing. All he had to do now was ask.

* * *

I walked off the stage as intermission was announced and never had I heard an audience so quiet for the first few minutes of it. Then came the applause. It was thunderous and deafening. I smiled to myself as I thought over the performance. This was wonderful. I thought I had managed to stay myself through the whole thing. I wasn't completely positive, because of the way Jason had looked at me after our song. Why had he looked like that? There might have been a moment, right as I heard my Angel sing, that I forgot myself, but I couldn't remember. It just seemed to... blend in with everything. I walked to the dressing room to prepare for the final act. I hummed the tune Ty had been humming that first performance night. It calmed me until I heard a voice. The same one I had heard before I was kidnapped. Except this time, the only difference was I could understand it.

"Come to your Angel of Music." It was as simple as that. It was being repeated over and over again. Each time it grew louder and louder and I felt unwilling to do anything but stand there and listen. That is exactly what I did until it grew so compelling that I had no choice but to step forward. A soft hiss and a grating sounded behind me. I turned and saw Ty in his full Phantom livery. My breath caught in my throat. He looked so striking.

He held his hand out. "Come to me." He whispered. His speaking voice now was just as beautiful as his singing voice but, at that moment, even more swaying and hypnotic. I stepped towards him and placed my hand in his. There was no hesitation. He pressed his lips to mine and hungrily kissed me. I was his once more. There was no one else except for me and him. He broke away and he led me to the door, the wall slowly sliding closed behind him. I heard a knock on the door we were headed to. I wanted to turn and look but the Phantom's eyes kept me where I was. I couldn't break away from them. I heard a name being called. "Emily? Can I come in?" The door opened.

* * *

I was so close! She was almost mine. If Jason hadn't called her name, she would still be completely under my control. I let her go and slid into the passageway and closed the hidden door. But not before I managed to whisper to her that I would be back.

* * *

I stood staring at the wall. Why was he gone? Why did he leave me? "Come back!" I sang. I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned to see Raoul looking at me worriedly. "Emily? Are you okay?" He asked me. Emily? Why did that name sound so familiar? Because it was my name. Good _god_! I _was_ going crazy. I couldn't tell the difference from reality and the play. I had an unsettling feeling that this strange occurrence _had_ happened before. "Raoul- Jason. Where'd he go?" Jason looked at me. "We're leaving. Now." He grabbed my hand and started to pull me out of the room. "No!" I pulled my hand away. "We have to finish the musical! Do you realize how much trouble we'd get in if we left? It'd be the end for both our careers before they've even really started, and- the intermission is almost over. We can't go. Please, Jason. I need to finish this." My voice dropped to a whisper, begging him.

Jason reluctantly agreed. "As long as you promise to leave with me as soon as it's over." I nodded. He smiled, kissed me quickly, and said, "I need you to come with me for a second." He pulled me out of the dressing room and onto the middle of the stage in front of the curtain. I saw that the entire cast sans the Phantom was standing out there also, smiling and whispering expectantly. "What are you doing?" I whispered. I was aware of every person looking at us. "Trust me." He smiled. "Emily," His mike was turned on. "I have something to ask you. These past few years have been the best ever since we started dating. I've known you forever, but I am so glad that we have gotten to be together." I felt my cheeks heat up.  
"I love you with all of my heart and I know that you are the one that I am going to spend the rest of my life with." He bent down on one knee and reached into his pocket. He pulled out a tiny box and opened it. Inside was a ring. I gasped. It was beautiful. My hand flew to my mouth and tears sprang to my eyes. A smile spread across my face and I tried, unsuccessfully, to keep tears from falling. "Emily, will you marry me?" he said. I was speechless. I nodded trying to get the word "yes" to come out of my mouth. It felt rehearsed, as if I didn't really mean it, but I thought that I _did_. I really truly did. Jason took my left hand, ignoring the shock we both received and slid the ring onto my ring finger. He stood up and kissed me in front of everyone, cast and audience. I didn't mind. For the first time in a long while, I enjoyed his kiss. We got cheers and whoops and I heard a chorus of "aww". We walked off stage together, hand in hand along with the cast to get ready for the top of Act Two.

My cheeks hurt from smiling as big as I was, but I couldn't stop. I was too busy pretending to be happy, even though I thought I truly was. I turned Jason around and threw my arms around him. "You don't know how happy I am right now." I whispered into his ear, and finally my emotions slid into the moment. It was like a wall I'd known nothing about fell away. But the feelings still felt somehow _less_ than they should have.

I laughed aloud, starting to feel giddy. I'm engaged! I kept the squeal that wanted to erupt safely away. He chuckled and said, "I think I do. You've needed some happiness the past few weeks and I figured now was the best time to ask. But," he reassured me, "that was not the only reason I asked." He gathered me into his arms and held me there for a second. "I'm shaking. That was the scariest thing I've ever done." He said. I really looked at his face and he looked so… cute that I laughed and enjoyed this moment even more than I already was. I was fully myself again and I truly was happy. We were the only ones back stage right then as everyone had flooded into the greenroom to give us some privacy and it was good just to relax in Jason's arms. No one could hurt me or take me away or enchant me with their voice as long as I was with him like this.

My smile shrank a little as I considered the rest of the night I still had to go to. All should go smoothly now. It will. This will be the best show we've ever done, and it will be perfect. No mind tricks, no anything out of the ordinary. I slid out of Jason's arms and pled costume change. He planted a quick kiss on my cheek and I hurried away to go change. When I got to my dressing room, I paused. I couldn't take my ring on stage. However, I didn't want to just leave it lying around. I didn't want it to leave me. I should have just tucked it into my bra, but I didn't want it to accidentally fall. I eyed the prop ring and chain and got an idea. I undid the magnetic clasp and I placed my ring on the chain. I slid it over my head and it rested a little ways below my collar bone. I reached up to touch it and smiled again. I just couldn't seem to stop. It was all I could do to not smile while trying to get back into character. I quickly changed into the gown I was going to wear. It was silver and gold and pink and blue and beautiful. A whisper of a sound reached my ears. "You are mine." It said. My hand flew up as I grabbed my ring, glancing at the wall in fear. I calmed down and laughed a little at how much it was an actual chain in the literal and mental sense. Literal 'it's actually a necklace' and mentally 'it's binding me to reality'. I walked out of the room and went to stand by Jason, who had changed into his next costume and looked really good. I mean, _really good._ I squeezed his hand and smiled up at him. This was perfect. _But Ty…_ my mind protested. I clenched Jason's hand all the tighter. I managed to catch a glimpse of Ty standing near the back, turned away from me. Oh, man. I swallowed. He looked good, too. I tore my eyes away to stare at the ground, pressing my ring tightly to my palm.

The assistant directors whispered for everyone to get in their places. Jason and I let go of each other's hands and he went to the opposite side of the stage. So began the beginning of the end of this whole ordeal. Or so I thought.

I laughed as I watched the guys who played the managers sang the beginning of Act Two. They did a great job of acting like pompous businessmen. As the music flowed along, Jason and I both went on to the stage and we danced together and sang the song _Masquerade_ along with the rest of the cast. Then Ty appeared. He sang beautifully, but the emotion that came from his voice was real. And it scared me. I felt the anger his voice invoked. I moved with the blocking as he sang and it called for me to walk up to him, to attempt to reason with him and keep everyone else from getting hurt because of how I had hurt him. I wanted all to be well but, I didn't want to get close to him before I had to. Ty took my hand and angrily pulled me to him as he hissed, "Your chains are still mine! You belong to _me_!" He yanked the chain holding my engagement ring off my neck. I let out a cry and my hand flew up to my neck. How I had forgotten about this little part of the musical, I don't know. He sang, "She will return to me," and pointed at Jason. "And be lost to you!" I had never heard those words in the musical before. Interesting. Then he disappeared in a burst of sparks from the stage. With my ring.

But if he didn't want me to have it, then why did it matter? Because, it was my promise to Jason that I would marry him. But did I want to marry him? Yes, but what about the Phantom? I would follow where ever he would lead me, wouldn't I? The scene ended. I couldn't move. Someone managed to pull me off stage during the mass exit of cast members. Somebody said something but I didn't answer. I managed to pull myself out of my thoughts and run through the next scenes. We flowed through _Notes_ and _Twisted Every Way_ and the _Rehearsal_. Then it was time for _Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again._ I sang it to Rao- Jason.

"You were once my one companion.

You were all that mattered.

You were once a friend, and savior,

Then my world was shattered."

Ty. He opened the door to so much more than I thought I would ever know. It wasn't all him, I realized that now. I loved Jason for all that he had done for me, and knew he would always have a special place in my heart, but I needed to come to terms with my feelings once and for all- and then I needed to abandon the others.

"Dreaming of you, won't help me to do

All that you dreamed I could!"

I needed to let him go.

"Wishing you were somehow here again!

Knowing we must say goodbye.

Try to forgive, teach me to live.

Give me the strength to try."

I could see him. His face was terrified. But I looked at him and gave a slight shake of my head. I was me. This was real. Mostly, I thought.

"Help me say goodbye.

Help me say goodbye!"

I wasn't sure what I was going to do next. Jason wouldn't want to let me go. I wasn't ready to actually go straight to Ty, plus that's a little in poor taste. I needed some time to go through everything, to get my mind around some of what had happened.

"Wandering child, so lost so helpless

Yearning for my guidance."

I turned, scarcely daring to blink. "Angel or father? Friend or phantom? Who is it there, staring?"

Angel- Ty- couldn't you hear me? Didn't you just hear what I meant?

"Have you forgotten your Angel?"

I could never forget him. "Angel, oh, speak! What endless longings echo in this whisper!"

"Too long you've wandered in winter, far from my fathering gaze."

"Wildly my mind beats against you-,"

I needed to hold on to this reality, this- this- truth, but I was slipping.

"You resist yet your soul obeys!"

"My soul obeys!

Angel of Music! I denied you! Turning from true beauty!

Angel of Music! My protector! Come to me strange Angel!"

I was willing to give in.

"I am your Angel of Music. Come to the Angel of Music!"

I stumbled to him, arms outstretched. I would gladly give myself over. I had betrayed him and he still wanted me. I blinked away tears. That was truly a love deeper than I could begin to comprehend.

"Christine!" Anguish reached me in the form of my name and halted the spell.

I faltered and turned a little. "Raoul!" I ran to him. No. Those feelings, those thoughts, they weren't my own. I loved him, Raoul, and only him. We fled from the graveyard with the Phantom taunting us.

I was affronted when Raoul grabbed my face and forced me to look at him. "Emily!" He hissed. "Wake up! Or, so help me, I will take you out of here right now!" I looked at him in confusion. "What are you talking about? I'm perfectly alright. Excuse me." I glared at him. He was the reason I had to go through with this. "I have to change." I pushed past him and went to change into my second to last costume. As I slipped out of my gown, I trembled, terrified. I didn't want to do this. I didn't want to sing his music, not when it meant he might take me, or him be killed. Why did I have to take his mask in the first place? Then nothing would have changed. Why had my blasted curiosity led to all this? I stood for a moment in my thin slip, alone in the darkness of backstage, hearing the beginning of _Don Juan Triumphant._ I needed to hurry. As I reached down to shake my costume out to step into it, hands met my waist, their heat searing through the think material of my slip. I slowly straightened. "You're beautiful." He murmured. "You will sing beautifully. For me." He whispered. Lips were on my neck and I reached up behind me and met the smooth plastic of his mask. Then he was gone. I pulled my dress up and had a passing cast member zip me up. Part of me couldn't wait to sing with my Angel of Music and another, smaller part was scared, scared that I would be forever trapped in his dark, beautiful music. But was that really all that bad? I pulled at my sleeves. This was one of my favorite costumes for this show, but I was loathing it at that moment. It was too constricting, too covering, for how I felt. Raoul was suddenly next to me. "Raoul? What are you doing here?" I whispered. "You shouldn't be back here! I thought you were going to wait in his box."

"Emily!" He pleaded quietly. "Please, wake up." And then he kissed me, gently. I gained that little bit of clarity that I had been missing. "Jason." I breathed. "I'm me. I think."

"Come away with-," The music had changed and I was about to miss my cue. I brushed past Jason and nervously began my entrance. I gained confidence as I started singing and the clear notes resonated across the stage. I heard Ty's footsteps as he walked onto the stage. I couldn't stop myself from shaking. I braced myself for the song that would overcome my mind. It didn't come. I turned and saw that he was standing there, covered in a long black cloak that hid his face, my ring in his hand and another on his little finger. He held the silence a bit more, building the tension and then he started to sing. I didn't have a chance. All was gone from my mind except his voice.

"I have brought you

That our passions may fuse and merge.

In your mind you've already succumbed to me,"

Piangi was sounding considerably better this evening. Maybe his nerves had aided him. He came up to where I was sitting and eased himself behind me.

"What warm, unspoken secrets will we learn,

Beyond the point of no return?"

He had slid his hand down my arm to rest over my hand and then drew it up my body, over my chest. Wait. No. This wasn't Piangi. He didn't wear a ring on his little finger. Oh god, it was _him_. I jolted up and ran from him. My heart was pounding, but I couldn't stop singing, I couldn't stop the opera. I tried to get back into character as I sang. _Pretend everything is fine._

We ended up together again, singing. When I pretended to drink from the goblet he handed me and he grabbed my wrist, I realized he wasn't going to let me go. Not now, not ever. I wrested my arm from his grip and tried to run off the stage but he grabbed my shoulders and we struggled back and forth across the stage. "We've passed the point of no return!" and with that, I jerked the hood from over his face, exposing his mask for all to see. He stood there for a moment, just looking at me, then he tried to run off through one of the wings. There were guards at both sides, pointing guns. But why weren't they doing anything? Why were they just standing there? He was right here! I started to turn and run off the stage to try and leave him for the last time when his voice stopped me.

"Say you'll share with me one love,

One lifetime, lead me, _save_ me from my solitude.

Say you'll want me with you here beside you."

I turned to him and saw the pleading in his eyes. I stepped towards him.

"Anywhere you go let me go, too."

And took another step. And another, until I was right there in front of him. He took my left hand and slid the ring from his finger onto mine. It fit perfectly. And oh, was it beautiful.

"Christine, that's all I ask of-,"

I had placed my other hand against his cheek. I felt the slight warmth of the plastic that hid his face from me. I gently slid my fingers down, down, until they met the edge of his mask. The fear I had felt was fast receding, but lingered long enough for one last act of rebellion.

In one swift movement, I pulled the mask away from away from his face. Gasps arose from the audience and from me when I saw that it was not makeup that covered his face. Vaguely, I thought that I had not hallucinated when the fire burned his face. Ty, my Angel, had been hurt. I looked at the mask in my hand and saw a latex mask covered in the actual stage makeup. His white mask must have stuck to the latex one when I pulled it off.

I heard a metallic cling as the phantom dropped my ring onto the stage floor. It rolled out of sight and was gone. Covering the side of his face with one hand, the Phantom grabbed my wrist and dragged me off stage through the dark and into my dressing room, everyone parting before him, still thinking this was part of the blocking. I resisted, weakly. I was so confused. What had just happened? What was going on? Why was everything so strange? I felt like I had just jumped out of another time and couldn't catch my breath. He did something that made the wall open up before him and he pulled me into the dank passageway, dust floating through the air. I looked around, awed. I'd had no idea these existed. There were many that we passed, all branching off in different directions, down under the school and in between the walls. He guided me through the labyrinth, his grip on my wrist never softening. He was muttering, cursing me. "You could have finished the final performance, but no. You had to pull off both masks. I knew that this would happen. I told myself! I should've-," His voice lowered, bouncing off the walls. We finally stopped, me gasping for breath at how quickly we had been moving. "Please, stop, Ty. I can't keep on. Where are you taking me?" I wheezed. He sang at me, his voice thundering. I fell to the ground and tried to cover my ears as well as I could with one free hand. It was so _loud._ But it had accomplished what he wanted. I was fully under his control.

* * *

"You can't leave now." I managed to regain my control over my anger that had finally freed my Phantom. He was still talking, but I was no longer quite so furious with how things had gone. "But, that just makes it easier for me to bear _this_." I pointed to my disfigured face. Red started creeping back in on my vision. I was losing to Him again. "You shouldn't have any worries considering _you_ are the reason it happened to me. If you're wondering, when you tripped, you hit me and caused me to fall straight into the flame. Now I'm stuck like this. For a while at least." She gazed up at me, at my ugliness. To my surprise, she didn't look disgusted. Just ashamed. That alone was enough to calm Him down. She stood slowly and gently brushed the side of my face. "I'm sorry." She whispered. She wanted my forgiveness. After everything, _she_ wanted _my_ forgiveness. But I said nothing. I couldn't. I didn't trust myself. I didn't trust Him. He led me down paths from which there was no return, and with Emily, I couldn't mess anything up.

I continued to pull her down the path, a little less quickly than before. We finally reached what looked like a dead end. I glanced back at her and saw the confusion she tried to hide. She turned to look back the way we had come. I tugged her a little and her attention snapped back to me. I reached out and shoved a lever hidden in the wall next to me. A soft creak and the wall opened up before us. I gently pulled her inside with me as the wall ground shut with a muffled _thump._ I let her go and started pacing, trying to keep my control over the darker half of me.

Wrong. Everything had gone wrong. First, with Jason proposing to her- and then her saying yes! I wasn't sure if that wasn't from a little manipulation on Jason's part, but it had been the turning point in my control with the Phantom. He was now controlling me for the most part and now everything was going wrong. Why had she said yes? She had given in, she loved me. I knew it. I heard her take in a breath and start to speak, "A-Angel? Where are we?"

"Home." I answered her. "Home?" She asked. "You live here? But, what about your parents?" I laughed out loud before I could stop myself. "What parents? I left them about a year ago. They decided I was too unpredictable to be left alone. So I left them." I stopped pacing and stared at the far wall, struggling to keep Him away. These questions weren't helping.

"How did you know about all of these… places?" She whispered, slightly overawed.

"They weren't completely useless. My family built this school. I know everything about it." I turned back to her and saw that she was still clutching my masks in her hand.

* * *

I took in the room we were in. It was wide, but somewhat oppressive. There was a bed at one end, covered in blankets, and in the middle of the far wall was a table and a couple of folding chairs, a cooler, boxes of cereal and the like. I could see a safe peeking around the edge of one of the chairs. On the other end of the room was a small curtained off section. It grabbed my interest and if I hadn't been so disoriented from everything, I probably would have tried to walk over and investigate. I swept my gaze back over to where my Angel was pacing back and forth, the darkness and anger coming from him so strong I couldn't make myself go to him either. He finally stopped and then he turned and stood there, looking at me. He stalked over to me and I couldn't help the small step I took backwards. His face was rather… alarming. He looked so angry with me. He stopped, hurt flooding his face. He reached forward and pried the masks out of my hands. I hadn't realized I was still holding them. He carefully peeled the old latex one off of it and he looked at me. Something broke in his gaze, and he sighed. He then slid the white half-mask over the angry scar. He then pulled me over to the curtained off area of the room we were in. He spoke, all anger and bitterness gone. "I have something for you." He said, quietly. He swept the curtain out of the way. My breath caught in my throat. In front of me was a white dress that looked almost exactly how I imagined my wedding dress would look, but instead of white beading, there was silver. The tiny beads formed the shape of roses and leaves all across the bodice with bits of a darker silver accenting the edges. Along the bottom of the skirt, smaller roses sparkled darkly in tiers. Surrounding the dress were hand drawn pictures. Hundreds of them. They were all different and made my heart ache. I was pretty sure they were all of me. Some were just my face, some were full portraits and others- others were simply my eyes. The _way_ he drew my eyes. Each drawing had something unique they were expressing and they were beautiful. There was a yearning, though, in each stroke of the drawings. Something that made me want to turn to him and hold him. To just be with him. He saw my expression and laughed softly, but not cruelly. He took my hand and spun me around to face him. We were centimeters apart. I felt rather than heard his breathing quicken, that's how close we were. "I want you to be with me forever." He murmured. He slid his hands around my waist, just to hold me in place. He bent forward and our foreheads were resting against each other.

"Marry me." He murmured. He didn't give time enough to answer before he was kissing me. I was in a shocked confusion. Marry him? My mind managed to think no, you're going to marry Jason. My heart said yes.

"No." I managed to gasp. He looked surprised. "I already told Raoul- Jason I'd marry him. I can't marry you until I break it off with him."

"Then you will." He growled. "But remember," He sang softly. "You are mine. Forever." Suddenly, Jason was gone from my mind... and heart. It was filled with my Angel and only him. I said something then, something that changed the Phantom's entire demeanor, "Forever." He kissed me again, passionately. He pulled me closer, if that was possible and took my left hand. He gazed at the ring he had put there earlier and something was in his expression that I wasn't sure I really recognized. "Change quickly." He whispered. "I have to go get something. I'll be back." He let me go and I shivered at the absence of his warmth.

He left me staring at the ring he had put on my finger. A black diamond was surrounded by a thin layer of silver that formed a perfect circle. As I looked closer, I saw flowing words engraved all around the band. They were _Amor Numquam Moritur._ It was beautiful. I wasn't exactly sure of what it meant, but it was still breathtaking.

I rubbed my thumb over the top to try and clean the fingerprints off of it. I felt the diamond sink beneath the pressure of my finger and I froze. I almost cried. I thought I had broken it. The only thing my Angel had given me, besides his voice. And his love.

The diamond didn't fall out or crack or anything. I warily pressed the diamond down again. I felt a soft click come from the ring. Music started to play, soft and beautiful. It was something I had never heard before. It was a love song that bespoke of passion, but it was gentle and calming. It made my heart melt with the feeling of love and protection that had suddenly overcome me.

* * *

 **I'm sad to say that we are nearing the end of this one. But if you liked it, don't fret! I have the makings of a second one. Guess which musical it's based off of. Guess. (Love Never Dies). Heehee. I don't have a title for it yet, so I'm currently working on it. And it might be a while before I post it because I have everything I have written for it somewhere in a notebook in my dorm room at school and I'm still on break. A couple weeks tops, I'd say. I want to make this a trilogy, but depending on how the next one goes, we'll see.**


	17. Chapter 17

**I just wanted to let you guys know that I went through all the chapters and edited the format. (I'm kind of embarrassed that it took me this long to discover the horizontal line tool.) So now, each of the different perspectives are separated (unless it is its own chapter) by lines. Longer passings of time are also marked by a line. Haha, it took me sooo long to figure out how to do that and any of the characters and extra spaces I would try and use to point out those things would disapear so I hoped y'all would just get that the differences in perspective or time were there. But, in my Word document, it's marked a lot better than it is on here, so I appologize.**

 **I have a question for you all and I would REALLY appreciate any feedback. It has to do with the possibility of a trilogy somewhere in the future.**

 **Here it is: what are your feelings about (AND MAJOR POSSIBLE SPOILERS!) Ty being the son of the original Phantom and Christine? Here's the kicker, though. Erik would have been a fallen angel born into a human body. His disfigurement would be a representation of the curse put on him, which could explain his madness- and like Ty, the struggle with the darker half of himself... if that makes sense, and it can only be broken by truly loving someone and them loving him back. The curse would turn out to be genetic (So why Ty left his parents- he has the curse, too) and thus the whole struggle with Jason and Emily and such. So the stories would go as follows: The Phantom of the Opera, Love Never Dies, and then the final one which wraps up everything and has more to do with the actual book than either of the musicals. Thoughts? Ideas? Criticism? Please PM me any responses.**

 **I realized whilst typing that when I orignally conceived the story idea, I hadn't thought it all the way through. There were several facts I had to reconcile, but I figured out a way to make them work. Please, any feedback would be very helpful. Thanks! :)**

 **Melstrife- yes, yes it does. :D**

 **And now, for your update!**

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 **Chapter 17**

She disappeared. She had… just vanished. Everyone was in a frenzy backstage, looking for her, except me. I knew who she was with and where she had gone. And what had happened to her. She was under Ty's spell. He had taken her away from me. I wished I had listened when Emily came to me with her suspicions about another kidnapper. But this didn't fall under kidnapping did it? She had gone willingly. I forced myself to move out of the spot I seemed to be frozen in and I ran to the changing room and grabbed my phone. I scrambled to find Abby Howlser's number. I pushed dial and listened to it ring for what felt like an eternity. After a maddeningly long period of time, she answered. "Where is she? What's going on?" Her voice sounded concerned. "Ty took her." I heard silence from her end. A deep sigh and then, "Oh no."

"Don't just 'Oh no' me! Tell me what to do! I know you know something about Ty."

"It's too long of a story." I was about to protest when she continued. "Basically, and I don't know everything, but from what I've been told, he's cursed with something. He's incredibly powerful, but he has a darker side that has been getting stronger. It's almost like a multiple personalities disorder, except for the fact that he can control people with his voice. It's a magic of sorts. But, he probably won't kill anyone. He's too smart for that."

"Magic isn't real. And _probably_? That's reassuring."

"Can I come backstage?"

"Yeah, come on. I'll open it for you. Hurry up!"

I waited by the door of the back hallway till Abby knocked on the door. I let her in and before I could say anything, she grabbed my arm. "I'll take you to him. I think I know where he is." I gaped at her. "You know all about this and yet you didn't do anything? Why didn't you tell me about it sooner?"

"He's not the type of person you want to cross. I've known him as long as you, but I think I know him a little better. Again, it's too long of a story. But he's taken my best friend so I have no choice but to help you."

"What do I need to know that I don't already?" We were wading through the crush of people toward the girl's dressing room.

"You've probably already figured it out, the way Em's been acting. But he can control people with his voice. The closer he is to someone, the more powerful, especially if there are feelings from the other party." That made me stop. Abby hadn't let go of my arm, so she pulled me along through the crowd behind her. His dad also said something about a mark- a rose that would show up. That's how much he loves her. It's a connection between the two of them." Abby explained. "I don't know if she has something like that or not but-," I cut her off, despair filling my voice. "It's there. She showed me. It kept shocking us both and we both wondered what- it doesn't matter. We need to find her!" Abby slowed from the quick pace we had been making and turned to face me. "Jason, just a forewarning, Emily might not seem like she loves you. She-," I cut her off, refusing to believe something like that. "Don't be stupid, of course she still loves me. She agreed to marry me didn't she?"

"Didn't you see him take the ring? She had switched it out." I felt my mouth drop as Abby pushed a hidden button and the wall opened up to reveal a passage.

"What? How'd you even notice that? How close are you to the stage?"

"Close enough. He took the engagement ring you gave her. That also has something to do with the power of his voice. As long as she had it on, she would have been protected from some of the power of his voice, even if it just meant it distracted her, because it was the symbol of your love that would be protecting her. But since he took it from her, I'm scared she's completely under his spell." She paused, looking like she didn't want to say anything else.

"What?" I asked her. "Nothing you can say could make this worse." She looked at me and I knew she was about to prove me wrong.

"I don't know if you can ever get her back. Especially if there were any traces of any true feelings she had for him."

I couldn't say anything for a long time.

We were running down the passage and stopped when we reached a fork in the tunnel. "It's like a labyrinth down here." She warned me. "Stay close. I think I know the rest of the way." She paused, confusion momentarily clouding her face. The Abby ran down the right passage. I followed, sprinting to keep up with her. It was almost dizzying running around this gloomy place. We ran along the walls, sometimes in a straight line down the middle of the passageways, avoiding several paths that branched away that led to places who knows where. I couldn't help but look around in awe. All this had been in the school? No one knew about it? Except for Ty, obviously. I wondered how he knew. How Abby knew. She took me a little ways farther and stopped. "This is as far as I can go. I'm sorry, Jason, but I don't want him to know I brought you. Take a left then a right and another right. You should find a dead end. Find the-," She closed her eyes as she thought. "Seventh brick from the top on the right wall. It's not the usual way it opens but it was designed in case the other way failed. And it's the only way I know. Press it in. She should be there." Abby gulped. "I hope." She turned from me and walked a little ways back down the winding tunnel. "I'll wait here. If you get her, I'll show you the way back. But hurry! I can't stay here long. If you aren't back in thirty minutes, I'll wait in the dressing room. You can call me." I didn't miss the fear in her voice or in her eyes as she whispered.

"Anything I should be cautious of?" I asked.

"Yeah. Ty." And with that she was gone, vanished around the bend in the passage.

I took off down the hall. I took a left and then the two rights. I almost ran into the wall that blocked me from Emily. I scrambled to find the seventh brick. I shoved it, straining against the age and grime that had built up since the last time it was used. The grating sound of brick against brick echoed off the walls. I winced as the passage shook from the walls opening up. If Ty didn't know I was here, he knew now. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart, and then I ran toward the room that appeared. I stopped when I saw her. She looked stunning. The dress she was in made her look flawless. She had her back to me. She was turned in the direction of several pages stuck to the wall. I walked a little ways closer and realized that they were of her. I ran a hand through my hair as I reached out to touch Emily on the shoulder. She turned and stared at me for a moment with an expression of joy on her face. I couldn't keep the huge smile away as I tried to take her into my arms. She took a step back.

"Em- What? What's wrong?"

I was completely confused until I saw the ring on her finger. He had her. My heart clenched. Her face went from elated, to disappointed, then to confused. Then she looked like she had just thought of something and it made her look like she wanted to cry. "Raoul…" she whispered. "I can't- I have to-," I stepped to her and held her tightly in a hug. "Emily, it's me, Jason! Let's go!" I tried to pull her toward the way I had come, but she shook her head. "I can't. Raoul-," she stared hard at me and shook her head as she corrected herself, "Jason, I love… you." I looked into her eyes and saw the war in her mind. It was going to destroy her unless I did something. Anything. I took her hands and said, "Emily, I love you, too. Let's leave! Escape together. I won't let anyone take you from me again." I squeezed her hand and felt the awful ring under my finger. Something shifted. A song began to play. I looked around, trying to see where it was coming from. Then I realized it was coming from the ring. I tried to cover the ring up and mute the sound but it only seemed to make it louder. I could see any struggle with her mind drop away as she succumbed to the music. I dropped her hands as the rose on her wrist delivered a nasty shock. I felt something, just then. It was like an ache in my heart. It felt like when you had worked out really hard and all your muscles were sore the next day only all the soreness was in my heart. _This is what heartbreak feels like._ I thought.

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 **Please send me what you think about the aforementioned idea! Thanks! :)**


	18. Chapter 18

**Thank you all for the wonderful reviews! (TurquoiseAdventures, asprankle1, Melstrife, Drslb!) Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 18**

When the wall opened up, I was disappointed not to see my Angel returning, but Jason. Something in the back of my mind told me I should be ecstatic to see him, but I just wasn't. I couldn't be. When he played the music, the last of my struggles fell away and strengthened my heart. Then my Angel walked in. "Jason." I murmured. This was the perfect opportunity to tell him about my decision to bind myself, body and soul, to the Angel. He looked up hopefully. "I'm sorry." I whispered. "I choose my Angel of Music."

He looked like he was about to say something when Ty cut him off. "So," he laughed. Jason spun around. "You actually managed to find us. Good. You can be the witness. You are legal aren't you?" In walked a slightly confused looking preacher. Bible in hand, he followed my Angel around the room until he stopped in front of Jason. Ty swept Jason's legs out from under him and quickly, masterfully, tied his hands behind his back and his ankles together. He pulled out a long strip of cloth and tied it around Jason's head, successfully blocking all sound Jason was trying to make. He dragged Jason over to a chair against the wall and heaved him onto it and then tied him to it. The he went back to the preacher who was still standing in the middle of the room and led him over to the opposite wall. "You may begin the ceremony." He said.

It was happening _now?_ I looked down at my dress and realized I had been stupid not to recognize what my Angel had meant for me to understand.

I was his from this moment on.

"We are gathered here today to witness the marriage of- ah- whom am I marrying?" The preacher asked. "Emily Christina Amare and Tyler Eriksson L'Ange." Ty said. The preacher asked if there was anyone present who objected to the marriage. Other than some struggling from Jason, there was no sound. I found it odd that the preacher wasn't asking questions about the tied up person behind us. I tried to look into his face and that's when I realized he was blind. His pale eyes stared unseeing in front of him. "Do you, Tyler L'Ange, take Emily Amare to be your wife? Will you love her, comfort and keep her, and forsaking all others remain true to her, as long as you both shall live?"

"I will."

"And do you, Emily Amare, take Tyler L'Ange to be your husband? Will you love him, comfort and keep him, and forsaking all others remain true to him, as long as you both shall live?"

"I- I-," I couldn't get it out. I tried, but the words were stuck. My mouth was dry and try as I might, no sound would come out. Maybe it had something to do with the look of total agony that Jason was staring at me with. I couldn't tear my eyes away from him. Then Ty grabbed my hand, and gently pulled me around to face him and only him, forcing my gaze away from Jason. "Emily?" He asked softly. "I-," I took a deep breath. If I wanted this or not- now was the moment of truth. I stared into Ty's eyes, and then at the ring on my finger. He loved me. I knew that. Then I shifted my arm and my gaze. The rose was there, always. Like a reminder that Ty, my Angel, would never leave me alone. Not really. He was always there when I needed him, always caring. I looked back up into Ty's flashing eyes and whispered. "I will."

His gaze held me in place as the preacher spoke, finalizing it all. "Then before God and this witness I pronounce you husband and wife!"

Ty took my face in his hands and softly, so softly, pressed his lips to mine. My eyes closed as he brushed my hair back. He pulled away and there was such ecstasy in his gaze that it made me smile. I was happy. Happier than I had been in such a long time. Then he took my hand and fiddled with the ring on it. The diamond sank beneath his fingers and the music began to play. Such beauty poured out of something so small. Another kiss was placed against my lips; both of us were smiling. Aside from the music, it was silent. The preacher was just standing there, looking slightly awkward, but he had a small smile on his face, as if he knew that we were just blissfully happy to be where we were, together. "Young love is beautiful." He murmured. "Ah, and speaking of which," the man had tucked the Bible under his arm and was patting around his pockets. From one, he pulled a small rectangular piece of thick paper. He held it out in front of him. "Now all that's needed are both of your signatures and then this will be official." A smile reached his eyes as he said, "Congratulations, you two."

"Thank you, Don. I appreciate it." Ty said. Don gave a silent nod, still smiling.

Ty pulled a pen out of his pocket and quickly scribbled his name across the document. I slid closer to him and saw that it was the marriage license. He then passed both to me. My eyes slid across the paper, taking it in. Most of the blanks were already filled out with their appropriate signatures. All that was left was for me to write my name.

I signed. With a final small flourish, my name was down in ink, our marriage official, and I couldn't believe it. I was married. At eighteen. My Angel took back the slip of paper and then he pressed his lips to mine again. He swept me away in a short happy dance we slid around the room to. He sang and I laughed. This was wonderful. After a moment when we were both gasping for breath, he walked me over to the far wall, twirling me as we went. He knelt down and opened the safe. He placed the license in it and just before shutting it, glanced over at Jason. He took the license back out and sauntered over to Jason, still struggling against his bonds. He waved the paper under his nose. "I win." He muttered triumphantly. "She's mine." I saw Jason's face. He looked exhausted, defeated. But just as I saw it, the look disappeared and was replaced by a fierce anger. He glanced over at me and the heartbrokenness returned. He closed his eyes. My Angel walked back over to me and put the license back in the safe and took my hand. He walked over to the preacher, took his arm and led us out of the room.

* * *

He was so handsome. The shadows cast by the tunnels made him appear dark and powerful. As we approached our destination, we met up with someone. I didn't know who he was, but he took the preachers arm and started to walk away. But Ty reached out and grabbed the stranger. They held a quick conversation that I strained to hear, but could only make out the odd word or two.

"Parents-,"

"No. They-,"

A few more whispered things and then, "Thanks." Ty said to the man. The stranger nodded and left with the preacher. Ty slipped his hand into mine again and we turned to go back. After a little ways, the Phantom stopped. He whispered, "You don't know how long I've waited for this day. The day that you would be mine, forever. I should never have let that idiot Nathan take you. I knew about his little obsession so I went to his apartment to end it. But I _saw_ you for a second. There. You, seeing you, surprised me so much, that the door had shut and been locked before I could do anything." He turned to me. "I'm sorry, Emily. I'm sorry that it happened to you. I could have stopped it, but I didn't." The sorrow in his face was real. I didn't want him to hurt. "It's okay." I said to him. "I'm here, now, with you. Everything's okay." I reached up and caressed his cheek. He leaned into my hand, his eyes smoldering like embers. "You're right." He said with a small smile. "Now it's just you and me…" He pulled me to him and kissed my jaw. He made a tantalizing line to my mouth. Just before he got there, he tensed up. "I still have to take care of Jason." He let me go and took my hand. "Let's go." I let out a slightly disappointed sigh. Something always seemed to interrupt us.

* * *

 **I know this is a shorter chapter, too, but I can't combine many more because they all need to be alone. Thanks for reading!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

It hurt. My heart. I knew she was captive under his hypnotic voice, but it hurt. She had just married him in front of me, kissed him, danced with him, _enjoyed_ it, and I hadn't been able to stop it. I had cried out in my mind, begging for someone, anyone to intervene. She had paused for a moment, making me think that somehow I had been heard, but she had still said it. "I will."

I never thought I would hate those words. I had always imagined hearing them being said to me. _I will; I do; I love you_. I let my head fall against my hand. I ran my fingers through my hair and sat there wallowing in my self-pity before I realized. _I had a hand free._

Springing into action, a small sliver of hope returning, I reached behind me and tugged at the rope that tied my other hand to the chair I was sitting in. It was too tightly secured. I tried to loosen my feet and got an ankle free. I struggled with the other one and after a long minute, had everything but my other arm at my disposal. Even with my newly regained maneuverability, I couldn't get my other hand free. I was about to try and exit through the way I had come, when the safe caught my eye. It was still open. I quickly started to drag myself and the chair over to it. I only had a few more feet! Seven… three… one… I reached for the document that joined my Emily to her heart's kidnapper. I picked it up with a trembling hand. I had it. I stared at it, the paper so unassuming for what all it entailed. Her name written in flowing letters next to his. I could end this. I would end this. Right now. I bared my teeth in a bitter grin, triumph starting to creep up on me as I bit a corner of it and started to tear. I hadn't gotten very far at all when I felt a flash of agonizing pain, saw stars dance in front of my eyes and then, suddenly, the floor rushed up to meet my head. I saw white ripple over the floor and Emily's pale but beautiful face was looking at me. I started to smile but then I fell into darkness as she faded away.

* * *

He had almost done it. He had almost ruined everything. But Emily and I managed to return in time. It took me only a glance to understand what he was up to. I don't know how I got over to him as quickly as I did, but I suspect that my Phantom had something to do with it. I had knocked him out before he could really vandalize the piece of paper that sealed it all into one flawless whole, my fist stinging with the sudden impact that I couldn't remember, the paper falling to the floor along with Jason's body. I heard Emily gasp as my fist met with the side of Jason's head. I thought maybe she had more genuine feelings for this idiot and had broken free of my enchantment when she grabbed my hand. "Are you okay?" she asked. Her soft lips pressed against my knuckles, soothing the already fading pain from hitting her ex-fiancé. I looked into her eyes and saw them flit from my face to Jason's still form sprawled out on the dusty floorboards with one arm awkwardly up in the air, still tied to the chair I had put him in. Apparently I had not tied those knots well enough.

"He'll be alright. I just knocked him out. He'll wake up soon." She gazed at him uncertainly. I didn't like it. He shouldn't be here anymore, it was causing too much confusion. She tried to hide it from me, but I could see it. "Em." She looked up at me and it was all I could do to _not_ kiss her. "I'm going to go drop him off away from you. Don't worry. He'll be fine." I bent down and slid the license back into the safe, not bothering to close the door. Nothing else was going to happen.

Then I pulled my pocket knife out and cut the remaining rope from Jason's arm. That knot had done its job, at least. I pulled Jason's arms up and slung him over my shoulders. I staggered a bit as I struggled to balance him. He wasn't a lightweight, I'll say that for him.

I left Emily standing alone, gazing at me with those huge brown eyes. It made me shiver, leaving her like that, so I hurried down the hall to abandon Jason outside the entrance I was sure he had followed me from. The long winding trek had me thinking about everything this _boy_ had been to Emily. He didn't deserve any one piece of her. Not even a look, a thought, anything. He wasn't worthy. The fact that he had touched her, fallen in love with her, was enough to build up anger. I felt cold inside as I opened the wall and dropped Jason like a sack of flour. I eyed him distastefully and considered waking him up just to gloat, but a gasp jerked me out of any monologue He had considered. I forced Him away. The control He had over me was starting to worry me. I hadn't even noticed when He assumed control this time. Pushing my thoughts away, I turned to face the direction the sound had come from. "Well." I whispered to Abby. "Looks like I know who showed him the way to where we were." The coldness returned full force. When would my so-called friends stop betraying me? "You were told never to reveal these passages to anyone. You swore it. Are you ready to pay the price for your betrayal?"

* * *

 **Again, super short, but this is the second-to-last chapter before the epilogue. And then it's time for the second one. That, or I go through all of this one again and try and find places to lengthen. See y'all soon!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Here it is! The last chapter before the Epilogue.**

* * *

 **Chapter 20**

He hadn't closed the safe. I figured if the documents inside were so important, he would have closed it right away. But after I glanced inside I guessed that he had forgotten. There was our marriage license, of course, but there were other things that surprised me. I couldn't say what everything was: a pile of cash, a lot of it, actually, lay heaped together to one side and there were two passports. I opened one and saw, with no surprise, that it was my Angel's. I opened the other wondering if he just had a spare, but it had my picture and information in it. I looked through it some more. It was blank. _I wonder where we'll go. I've never left the country before_. I placed mine back and looked through Ty's. France, Spain, Japan, and so many other places were stamped throughout those pages. I looked once more at everything before I put it all back exactly where I found it and shut the door, just to be cautious. You never knew what was going to happen.

I yawned. The dim lights and the late hour made it hard for me to keep my eyes open. I stumbled over to the bed in the corner of the room and hesitantly sat down. Not going to lie, my cheeks turned red. I was married. This was a guy's bed. My _husband's_ bed.

Just as I was about to give in to exhaustion and lay down against the soft blankets, Ty returned carrying a couple of candles and a bag of takeout. I tried to savor the surprisingly good Italian food, but I was so tired. Neither of us spoke much, too intent on eating and, in Ty's case, watching me as I finished eating and obliviously stared at the candle closest to me. It was too bright so I found myself watching the ever changing shadows on the dusty wooden floor.

Ty started singing. Soft and soothing, his voice made it even harder for my eyes to stay open. It grew louder as Ty stood up and walked closer to me. He helped me stand up. He put his arms around me and picked me up. I closed my eyes as I felt the ground disappear. My foot nudged the table and I heard a clink as a candle fell from the table. The wick didn't go out and the wooden floor burst into flames, years of dust providing perfect kindling. Suddenly, I wasn't tired anymore. Ty set me down and grabbed one of the cloth napkins we had used for dinner. He tried to beat out the flame but only succeeded in catching the napkin on fire, too. He dropped it and started to run with my hand in his. The flames were spreading too quickly. He opened the door and we ran out. We sprinted a little ways, me holding up my dress to try and keep from tripping over the hem. The heels didn't help much.

We were nearing what I thought must be the exit when I felt my arm jerk backward and Ty's hand slipped from mine. I heard him hit the floor with a thud. I spun around and saw Jason and Abby holding my Angel down on the floor. Jason had this determined fury that darkened his whole countenance. "What are you doing?" I cried. "There's a fire! We need to go!" Abby studiously avoided my questioning glance. Jason was too preoccupied with yelling at Ty to look at me. My Angel just ignored him and graced me with a soft grin that seemed to say, _It'll be okay._ I saw Jason raise his fist and bring it down on the back of Ty's skull, eerily reminiscent of what Ty had done to him a couple of hours earlier. I cried out, "No!" But it was as if I had never spoken, for all the effect my cry seemed to have. "Creep. Wearing that mask. Making her-," Jason had pulled Ty's mask off, and what we all now saw cut him off. "Oh." Jason shivered and Abby, who was still avoiding my eyes, just stared at Ty with an intense sadness. They both stood, and I tried to run to him, but Jason and Abby both stood in front of me. "Em-," Jason started. I darted around him and sank to the floor. Just as I reached out to try and rouse my Angel, two sets of arms lifted me up and pulled me away. "Stop!" I yelled. I twisted, trying to break their grip on me.

We were leaving him. Abby and Jason continued to drag me down the passage until I could no longer see him. When they finally let me go, I was sobbing for breath, defeated. I leaned against a wall. "Why are you doing this?" I asked, looking directly at Abby. She turned away from me, but then stiffened up, as if deciding something. She faced me and I gasped. A livid bruise was spreading along her cheek. "How- how did that happen?" I stammered. I surreptitiously slid my shoes off. "Your 'Angel' did this to me."

"He wouldn't."

"He's cursed, Emily. He hit me because I told Jason how to find you. I betrayed him. And this is one of the mild ways that he repays betrayal. Or so he said."

"I don't believe you." I was readying myself for another go at escape. Abby turned away again, and- _now_! I bolted for the small gap she had made and shoved Jason aside for good measure. I reached the bend in the passage and then tripped on my dress. I loud _rip_ sounded through the air as I fell to the floor. I struggled to get up again, I was almost to him! But as I stood I felt warm hands grip my shoulders.

"Emily." I heard Jason say. "Look at me." I shrugged his hands off and turned to him. "Don't you remember? I love you. This spell, these feelings. They aren't real." Spell? What was he talking about? "Emily, I know how to break it. You need to trust me." I struggled to get away from him, but his grip was too tight. Abby had let me go and was down next to Ty, her hand on his back, feeling for his breath. "Trust you? Why would I do that when you just knocked out the man love and are going to leave him to die?" Pain flickered across Jason's face. "Die?" Abby asked, concern falling over her face. Then she shook her head. "Emily, he's enchanted you or something." She said as we began our trek back down the hall. Yes, my Angel's voice was enchanting wasn't it? When we had gotton a ways farther than before, I looked up, determination filling my mind. I would not be forced away from the man I loved. Jason looked back at me. Suddenly his gaze grew hard and a little cold. I stepped back, suddenly at a loss and he pulled me to him kissed me. I struggled, trying to get him off me. It was no use, he just held me closer and I cried out against his mouth in frustration. "Emily, please." The sadness in his eyes as he looked at me made me blink. He took my left hand, ignoring the shock we got and slid my ring off. "What are you-," I started to ask when he threw it to the floor and stomped down on it. Hard. I slapped him across the face with everything I had in me. I know for certain I cried.

He was cruel.

I pressed my hand against my head at the sudden ache that shot through it. I leaned back against the wall, too dizzy to stand up straight. I gasped as a thin veil seemed to be lifted from my eyes. What had I been manipulated into?

I had married the Phantom.

No. There was no way I actually did it. No, I couldn't have! I'm eighteen freaking years old, for goodness sake! "Jason, I'm so sorry!" I whispered. He didn't catch the double meaning. He looked back at me and whispered, "Babe? Are you okay?" I looked at him, about ready to slap him again and walk away for good. Anger coloring my voice, I hissed, "Jason. For the _last_ time. Don't call me that!" His face lit up with relief. "And she's back. I knew you didn't mean it!" But I had. He didn't understand. I had apologized for the slap, and for breaking his heart. Not for my feelings that I still had.

I smelled smoke. The acrid aroma was thick and choking. Abby looked at me and understanding flooded her face. "It's too late, Em. We need to go." Abby said, and they both turned and started to run off, but I stayed where I was. I needed to go to him. If I found him, there was no guarantee that I could wake him up and get us out. I didn't know the way. I turned to peer around the corner, hoping to maybe see him running to me, but there was nothing but empty hall. We were too far away. "Emily." Jason had come back and taken my hand. "Come on. We need to go." I let him pull me forward. I struggled to keep my tears from falling. We caught up to where Abby was waiting. She sent me a glance that made me think she knew how I was feeling. With a slight shake of her head, she turned and continued to run through the passage. Jason followed her faithfully, still pulling me with him. Abby led us true and we smelled fresh air within a few seconds. We stepped outside into the bright moonlight.

Fire alarms were going off and a fire truck had just entered the scene as we made our way into the parking lot from the small grounds shed the path had led us into. Abby ran over to the firefighters filing out of the truck and I assumed she explained the situation while running with them back into the school. Jason tried to speak to me, but I wasn't going to say anything to him. Not right now. I couldn't without breaking down. The firefighters soon reappeared saying the fire had just gone out. "And all those passages, they'll have to be mapped and probably shut down. Who knows how old they are. Could be unstable." But Ty was not with them. Abby walked over to us, worry plain as day on her face. "He was gone." She whispered. I stared at her, not hearing for a moment.

"What?!" I slipped my hand from Jason's and ran back into the small shed, ignoring both of my friend's cries to stop. I sprinted down the passages using my memory as a guide. I found myself at the wall that was opened part-way onto the room. Ty had been nowhere to be found. He hadn't been where Abby and Jason had left him in the passages. I cautiously peeked around the wall. It was empty. The floor was scorched where the candle had fallen, but the wooden planks must have been thick because there wasn't much damage. It looked like the years of dust had been what caught fire and nothing else, and apparently smoked quite a bit, because the scorching of the floor didn't leave the room. I gazed at disheveled room. I noticed that the fire had reached the safe. The door had been left open, which confused me. I was sure I had closed it. Hadn't I? I held my breath as I eased the door farther open and peered inside. I was met with the sight of a pile of charred papers. None of them were legible. I tentatively poked the blackened paper that rested about where the license had been sitting. It disintegrated. "It looks like it never happened." I whispered. My ring was gone, the paper that joined us was gone, and the man that I had thought loved me was gone, too. I was alone again and this time, even my rose tattoo did not help comfort me. He was gone. He left me. I started to consider that maybe Jason and Abby were right about my feelings being a part of the spell Ty had cast. But if that was so, why did my heart hurt so much? Why did it feel like Jason had stomped it along with my ring? I turned to leave and I saw it. Placed on the table, which had been bare only moments before, was the Angel's mask. I stared for a moment before racing into the passageway. "Ty!" I called. Silence. A small movement caught the edge of my vision. I turned in time to see a figure cast in shadow vanish around a corner. I thought about running after him- because who else could it be besides Ty?- when I heard footsteps pounding against the floor. Jason and Abby had caught up with me. "We need to go. If those firemen catch us here, we'll be in huge trouble. Em, you're already in enough trouble as it is." I nodded silently and followed them back out into the cold night air.

* * *

 **There it is. More is explained in the Epilogue, but not everything. Which means that it all leads into... THE NEXT ONE! Please read it when I post it. :)**


	21. Epilogue

**UUPDATE: If you read this earlier, please read it again, I have changed some things that didn't make sense or contradicted with something else. I think I fixed it all.**

 **This is it! The final chapter in my first story. Not everything is tied up into a bow. In fact, you could say that this is just a cliffhanger to lead into the next one! Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Epilogue:**

It was finally here. My high school years were practically over. Thank goodness. I thought back over the crazy year I'd had and considered some events that hadn't quite made any sense, even now.

When I had returned to school the following Monday after that disastrous final show, no one had said a word about my odd disappearance with Ty. All I got were congratulations on a show well performed and wrapped up. Mrs. Radley didn't even say anything, which had made me realize that something wasn't right. After spending a day stumbling around in confusion, Abby provided an explanation after school. "Has anyone asked you about Saturday?" She had asked. When I shook my head, she handed me a note. "I think it's because of his parents." Abby had said. When I tried to ask her what she had meant, all she did was gesture to the note I now had in my hands. She had left me to read it.

It had been typed on thick crème paper that vaguely reminded me of something, but I couldn't quite place it. It read:

Dear Miss Amare,

We are deeply sorry that your senior year has not been more enjoyable. We take full responsibility for our son's actions. You should find that any and all recollection of Saturday night's performance has been modified to exclude your unfortunate disappearance and also your involvement with the fire. That way there should be no questions, no unwanted attention, and no blemish on your remaining months as a high schooler. Tyler has been recalled home and will stay here for the foreseeable future. He will not bother you again.

Miss Amare, we apologize for everything and also would like to assure you that should you need anything, you only need to inquire of Miss Abigail Howlser and she shall direct your questions and requests to us. You will find that with the fading of the rose- for it will fade- all remnants of the enchantment will slip away and leave this as nothing more than a bad memory. We hope you find the rest of your year enjoyable.

Yours sincerely,

I couldn't read the first signature that had been scrawled out in sharp letters that left it illegible. The second however, was penned in a delicate hand that made me gawk in confusion:

Christine D. L'Ange

Ty's mother's name was Christine? I stared hard at the first signature, but couldn't make out anything. I had folded the note up and slid it into my backpack and promptly forgotten about it. I had been trying to bury the events and feelings that wouldn't go away in school work and college applications.

At least, I had forgotten about it until now, sitting here in a folding chair in the midst of a sea of students in the gym. I was graduating. I had managed to pull out straight A's and a great SAT score which helped a whole bunch when applying for scholarships. I sat there in the crowd, completely surrounded by students as I waited for my name to be called. But I felt alone. I was starting to get used to the empty feeling that took up everything now that Ty was gone for good.

When the principle announced my name, I stood and walked to the front. We had already received our fake diplomas and were now all sitting there waiting for the principle to stop bragging about how well this class had done. Now he was going through and highlighting all the students he deemed important. As I walked, the principle droned on about how I had gotten a full scholarship for theater at a school in New York. He told about my year and a selection of the events that had taken place. He finished and then looked at me and quietly asked me if I would turn around. Confused, I did. I heard footsteps and was told to turn around again. Jason stood in front of me. He was fidgeting and his face was red. The crowd behind him was unusually quiet as he bent down on one knee and held a ring out to me. He said, "I figured since the first ring, ah, disappeared, I needed to get you another one. Emily Amare, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife? Will you marry me?" I threw my arms around him. I had to act the part. My "Yes!" was completely drowned out by the cheers from the rest of the graduating class. He slid the ring on my finger and kissed me gently. We walked away from the podium together and to two empty seats near the back of the gym. When the rest of the ceremony was over, students started milling around, talking to parents and getting photos taken. I saw my parents in the crowd. They were happy and I was acting happy.

They had flipped when they got home and I told them about everything. Well, almost everything. I mean, I told them about Nathan and that whole fiasco. They insisted on hearing everything about that. Then they asked about the show and I managed to cobble together a story that sounded believable when they asked about why I looked so down. "After show depression." I lied. Even though the show had been over with for around three weeks by that time. They laughed and turned the conversation to school and college applications. Then everything returned back to the way it was before Ty had first appeared in my life.

"By the way," Jason asked, snapping me out of my thoughts. "What ever happened to that dress? That he gave you."

"It's out of sight and out of mind." I said. It was out of sight, buried in the back of my closet, but it was most certainly not out of mind. I had decided to keep it. It was all I had now. Abby had ventured through the passages before any of the authorities found those drawings Ty had made of me. She wouldn't tell me what she had done with them. So I kept the dress buried under a pile of shoes and junk in my closet. I couldn't let it go. Just like I couldn't let these feelings go, so I buried them, or tried to.

"Good. Because I don't want you to-," His voice faded as someone I didn't recognize walked past and brushed my hand. I fell against Jason and then slid to the floor as the memory hit me.

 _Failed. It had failed. It had been flawless. And it had failed. She was gone. The throbbing at the back of my head seemed to grow with my anger and the coldness that was slowly spreading throughout my body. She would be mine again. The smell of smoke made me cough and gave me the motivation to sit up. I got to my feet and leaned against the wall. The smoke was worse from this height. I stumbled forward then I remembered something I had left in the room. I ran back._

I opened my eyes long enough to see Jason's worried face looking down on me when another memory assaulted me.

 _I had gotten it. It was a little singed around the edges, because I had dropped it, but the writing was still legible. I pulled the smaller piece of paper out from behind the one I was looking at. The paper had started to curl from the heat but other than that, it was perfect. I folded the papers in half and stuffed them in my pocket. I listened. I knew they were long gone but apart from the crackling of the dying fire, I thought I had heard footsteps. I was right. They grew steadily louder. The pounding on the wood and dirt floors caused some vibration that I was able to feel. I ran down the first passage I came to, knowing it was empty of people. I waited for a moment, and saw Emily come running around the corner, a wild look in her eyes. What? Why was she here? She went into the room I had just vacated and I followed her, silently. She observed everything. Then she walked to the safe that I had left open after getting what I needed. I had set a match to everything else in there. She bent down, her dress gaping at the rip near the hem. "It looks like it never happened." I heard her whisper. I grew cold at that. No- no. My fist clenched around the mask I had picked up from where they left me. I would let her know I had been here. I set it down on the table we had sat together at only minutes ago. I had to force myself to walk steadily down the passage away from her. I should have taken her with me, but it looked like she needed a little more- persuasion. "Ty!" I stopped at the corner when I heard her call. I glanced at her from my shadowy vantage point and decided to continue on. Let her come to me, if she would. I could still smell the smoke when, after many turns, I ran out into the bright light of the moon. Alone._

There was no break this time.

 _He had asked her to marry him again. I felt my anger threatening to explode. I waited until the ceremony was over, watching like any other crowd member. I saw her, sitting with him_. _How easy_ _would it be for me to just walk over and sweep her away before anyone realized what had happened. No one would recognize me with this mask on. But no. I knew I had to wait. I had to wait for the perfect moment. I would just let her know I'm still here. Waiting for her. And that she's still mine. The rose was still on my wrist, so it had to be on hers as well. She loved me. No matter what Jason and Abigail might convince her, she would always be mine. I took out the slip of paper and the ring I had put in my pocket. I walked over and ever so slightly, brushed her hand, slipping the paper into her grasp and the ring into her pocket. I heard her gasp and when I glanced back, I saw that she had fallen to the floor. It took everything in me not to run to her, to make sure she was okay, but I continued on. Then I was lost in the crowd. She wouldn't find me until I wanted her to._

I knew that those memories were from the Phan- from Ty. I opened my eyes. I wasn't able to see what the documents were. I had seen them but I couldn't remember what had been on them. My mind wasn't working correctly. Surely one hadn't been the marriage license. I had found burnt paper in the safe! But there had been a huge amount of paper in there. The thing I saw could have been some other document. It was plausible. I thrust the thought from my mind. I refused to believe that I was still joined to Ty, refused to acknowledge the longing that rose up deep within me. I bolted upright when a thought hit me. If I had seen those memories that meant Ty had been the one to brush my hand. I ran in the direction that he had walked. I scanned the crowd, searching but finding that everyone looked too similar with their caps and gowns. Jason caught up with me and asked, "What's the matter? Did you have another blackout?" I nodded while thinking, _What else would it have been?_ "Who was it?" He asked. I turned and said two words. "It's him."

"Him?"

"Ty."

Jason looked around nervously. "I thought you said he was gone. I won't let him take you away from me again!"

"Nothing is going to happen." I reassured him. "It was just memories that told me how he got away." I lied a little. So what? It likely wouldn't affect anything. Jason looked slightly relieved, but he couldn't get rid of the anxiousness that he showed by his grip on my hand. When my emotions returned after the remains of the blackout faded away, I had to force myself to keep my act up. I couldn't cry. Not now, not here in front of everyone.

I missed him. So much.

* * *

Jason dropped me off at home after a huge party thrown by the theater department. My parents had left the school hours earlier and it was just Jason and me standing on the porch. He hugged me and started to kiss me, but I couldn't keep it up anymore. I was tired and heartsick and I needed to check some things. "Goodnight, Jason." I wriggled out of his arms and unlocked the front door. He caught my hand and shocked both of us. He let me go with a hiss. I turned back to him and saw the worry on his face. "I'm fine." I lied. "I know. I just thought that that shock or whatever would have gone away by now. You know, 'cause the rose is gone." It hadn't happened since that last performance night. And the rose- I shrugged. "I'm tired." I whispered. His face softened. "Goodnight, I love you." He said. I turned the corners of my mouth up in an attempt to smile. "I love you, too." My voice was flat and I couldn't even pretend to believe what I had just said.

My mom was waiting at the top of the stairs after I closed the door. "Everything okay?" She asked. "Yep." I avoided any more of her questions by excusing myself to bed, saying I had had a long day. I walked into my room and closed the door. I turned on some soft classical music and shakily reached into my pocket. I pulled the piece of paper that had been slipped in my hand before my blackout. I unfolded it. It was a sketch of a rose that had been artfully shaded and colored until it looked almost real. What was behind it was what shook me. A drawing of a banner weaved in and out through the roses leaves. The elegantly drawn words that swept across it made me close my eyes.

'Till death do we part, my Love.

The drawing fluttered to the floor as I let it go. I couldn't let myself consider what it hinted at. I opened my eyes as I picked the picture back up and looked at it for a moment. It was beautiful. I wish I could thank him for-. No. It was all false. All of it. I ran to my closet and dug through all the junk that was piled on the floor until I reached a small trunk. I unzipped it and carefully placed the drawing in with my wedding dress. I stroked the fabric and let my mind wander for a bit before I realized what I was doing. I zipped it all back up, piled shoes back on top of it and stood. I closed the doors and then went to change into my pyjamas. I slid my dress off over my shoulders and bent over to step out of it. I waited for a second, remembering a moment very similar to this one, only I hadn't been alone. Backstage, in the dark. "You're beautiful." He had whispered. I closed my eyes, yearning for his touch, his voice. I dropped my dress and heard a soft thump as it hit the floor. I snatched it up. What was that? I felt in the pockets and my fingers closed on something small and smooth. I briefly shut my eyes, dreading and hoping all at the same time that it was what I thought it was. I pulled out the ring and pressed my hand to my mouth. I was never going to escape. One of them would always be chasing me.

After that night of the fire, Abby and Jason had both sat me down in my house and insisted we go over everything that happened. Jason wouldn't let go of my hand. I had related the story to them, failing to keep my tears inside where I wanted them to be. I couldn't keep the truth from them. I had lost him. I had tried to tell Jason, "I- I don't love yo-," but he and Abby had cut me off, explaining that it was all a part of Ty's enchantment. Abby told me everything she knew about Ty. We had all grown up together for a while, until his family left. No one knew why, but apparently, I was the only one to forget them. The note I had received from his parents explained that to me though. They had made me forget, like they had made an entire audience full of people forget.

 _But how had he gotten away from his parents? Didn't they say that he wouldn't be able to see me again?_

I tried again, later, to tell them, "I think I really do love him, though." It continued on for a couple of months until they managed to convince me those feelings were false. I loved Jason. He loved me. Everything was as it should be. These feelings I had for Ty would fade quickly. Except, they didn't.

When Jason asked me to marry him, it was very reminescent of intermission that last night. I tried so hard to be happy and feel it and mean it. But no wall broke this time. No emotions were there to slide into place and make me feel how I knew I should.

I stared at the ring resting in the palm of my hand. It looked as perfect as the day I had first received it. To look at it, I would never have known that it had been destroyed had I not been there. I took my engagement ring off and slipped the other one on. It felt right. My Ang- no. I tugged it off and set it down on my dresser, the diamond glinting darkly. I buried my face in my hands. _I thought all of this would be over!_ But I still loved him. I walked silently into the bathroom and plunged my wrist under the sink's faucet. I turned the water on and I scrubbed with my other hand. The foundation I had used to mask the rose slid away down the drain.

It was supposed to disappear. It was supposed to fade. All of this was supposed to fade. But it wasn't. I knew in my heart that I didn't want it to. I loved him. I loved Tyler L'Ange, my dark Angel, and there was nothing I could do about it.

I dried off my wrist and crept back into my bedroom. I turned off the light and slipped into a t-shirt. I stood there, in the dark, for who knows how long, just trying to get myself to walk past the ring, to leave it be. I finally crawled into bed and looked over at it, thumb firmly pressed to the rose on my wrist. I couldn't. I stepped over to my dresser and picked the ring up. I slid it back onto my ring finger and accidentally pressed the diamond down as I did so.

The beautiful sound that filled my heart and mind as the music played brought the tears that had been lurking just below the surface since my blackout. I tore the ring off and hid it under my pillow. I lay back and closed my eyes, trying to will sleep to find me. But it didn't. So I lay there for hours. Staring into the night.

Alone.

* * *

My mother was silent as she drove me the four hours to her and my father's apartment building. She had not said a word to me since she picked me up. I had called her to tell her where I was. She came to me and looked at me with so much pain in her eyes. That cleared every bit of influence He had had over me the past couple months, which had been considerable. Emily. She was gone. I had almost lost everything. Because of Him. My rage at everything dissipated with the realization of how idiotic I had been. My god, it had happened again. He had taken over again. The reason my family moved in the first place, all the confusion and chaos- it had _all_ happened again. Because of Him. Always because of Him. I wasn't sure if I could ever recover from this. I laughed bitterly in the quiet of the car, causing my mother to toss her long brown hair out of the way to glance at me in alarm. "Tyler?" She asked. "Are you alright, dear?"

"No. It's Him." Her shoulders slumped forward as she grasped the meaning of my words. She and my father and thought that perhaps separation would help cool Him off. It had done nothing of the sort as I now sat here fully aware of everything I had conspired to do in order to stay with the woman I loved. The woman who left me. _Or should you have gone after her?_ I wondered. My heart throbbed at the thought. I wouldn't recover from this. I knew I wouldn't. At least, I wouldn't without her. He wouldn't allow it.

The rose on my arm gained a little more opaqueness as I stared down at it. I smiled when I realized what it meant. She loves me. The stronger the color, the stronger the feelings. I knew that for sure. I had a chance. I would win her heart. She would be mine. Because

Verus Amor Non Moriatur.

* * *

 **It's done. Thank you all so much for reading! I have thoroughly enjoyed this ride and hope you all have, too! I will start to post my next story in a couple of weeks after I get back to school and can find the notebook I have it written down in. It will most likely be posted under Plays, and then in Love Never Dies, or I might just post it under Books and Phantom of the Opera since it is a sequal to the Masks We Hide Behind. Thank you all so much for the reviews and support! (Melstrife, _thank you so much!_ for what you said, but I have a way to make the timeline work ;)).**


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